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RNZ News
3 days ago
- Climate
- RNZ News
Riwaka couple's house surrounded by water after Tasman, Nelson flooding
The couple said they were prepared for the weather that hit the top of the South Island last week, but the rain came thick and fast. Photo: Samantha Gee / RNZ From State Highway 60, Pouesi and Hillary Fitisemanu's Riwaka home was completely surrounded by water this weekend. The couple live next to the Motueka River and Pouesi Fitisemanu said they were prepared for the weather that hit the top of the South Island last week, but the rain came thick and fast. "First thing Friday morning, it was all hands on deck, [there was] more water than I wanted to see, Fitisemanu said. The Tasman District remains under a state of emergency, while officials work to determine the full scale of the damage, which has seen extensive flooding across valleys in Motueka, Tapawera, Tadmor and Wai-iti. The Fitisemanu's land, near the Motueka Bridge, is a park over property for New Zealand Motor Caravan Association members and the couple had five motorhomes staying on Thursday night, who awoke on Friday to find it lapping underneath their vehicles. "We had a couple of hours to move people off safely, and we'd already moved the animals the day before." He had moved his four sheep and two cows to higher ground on Thursday Photo: Samantha Gee / RNZ They were able to relocate all but one couple, whose bus had a flat battery and have since been staying with them. "We're sort of landlocked at the moment, vehicle-wise, we've got access up through the neighbours and we can walk out there." He had moved his four sheep and two cows to higher ground on Thursday, but the deluge meant there was no dry ground on their property until floodwaters receded. "There's no grass left for the animals, but we've moved them to as high a ground as possible and they've got feed and bits and we've had lots of people offer to take the animals and look after them while we get things sorted." The couple have lived next to the river for 14 years and this was the fifth flood they had experienced and it was the worst, Fitisemanu said. A few of their vehicles were flood damaged, but their house was unscathed. The couple's Riwaka home surrounded by floodwaters. Photo: Supplied / Pouesi and Hillary Fitisemanu "The house is built up high and I felt quite confident that we weren't going to get water inside it, that is probably one thing I can think the council for, they required us to build a certain level and it's paid off." He had used pallets to make a raft for his sheep to stand on so they were not in the water, and when the water levels dropped, would relocate them elsewhere to graze, as there would be a lack of feed. "We've got plenty of water and milk and supplies in the cupboard and [this is a] two-storey place, so we had a safety zone to go to if we needed to," he said. The scale of the clean up would not be known until the water subsided, but their paddocks would be covered in silt, with fences washed out and there would be a bit of a clean up to do, Fitisemanu said. "There's nothing you can do about it. It's just something you've got to deal with and keep a positive attitude." A few of their vehicles were flood damaged, but their house was unscathed. Photo: Supplied / Pouesi and Hillary Fitisemanu Nelson Tasman Civil Defence group controller Alec Louverdis said on Sunday that teams were working to assess houses in the worst affected areas and there were two yellow stickered properties, one in Nelson and one in Tasman. Assessments had been completed in Tapawera, Riwaka, the Motueka Valley and Brightwater, with assessments still to take place in Moutere, North Wakefield and Ngatimoti. "We're still anticipating that there will be some either yellow or red stickers." State Highway 6 remained closed between Kohatu and Kawatiri and Louverdis said there were 47 local road closures. Tasman Deputy Mayor Stuart Bryant said the rural community had been extensively affected by the flooding, with many in Motupiko and the Upper Motueka Valley dealing with a repeat of the floods in 2021/2022. "There will be a lot of heartache as they repair fences and flood damage." Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced that the Mayoral Relief Fund had been opened, with $100,000 in it to start, to help residents to access funds to deal with issues in the immediate term. Mitchell said the council had been proactive in declaring a state of emergency, early. "That is absolutely the right thing to do, we are a country that is going to continue to face weather events. What's happening with these weather events is that they can be more severe and they can change suddenly ... we'll continue to work together to identify what we need to do in the medium to long term with the recovery." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
Who's watching who? New bill aims to reduce red light violations with proposed pilot program
A new bill that would create a pilot program for red light cameras across the state was introduced in the House on Thursday. HB565 would created a pilot program to set up red light cameras across the state to capture the license plates of those who run red lights. Warnings would be sent out for violations and the program would be used to gather data on red light violations across the state. The bill's sponsor, Rep. Jake Fitisemanu, D-West Valley, worked with agencies across the state such as Utah Department of Transportation, public safety, the UTA Highway Patrol, to come up with this pilot program to help deter drivers in Utah from running red lights. The program would use new technologies to operate as smoothly as possible. Last year at one intersection near Fitisemanu's home in West Valley, there were four people who died as a result of red light crashes. But, he said it's not just a problem in his neighborhood, this is happening all around the state. 'We're trying to change behavior, right? We're not just out here trying to hand out tickets and punish people. So I think we found a way that we can do this in a way that becomes a deterrent. This is going to be based on evidence and data.' Fitisemanu said. The Department of Transportation would identify up to 10 high-risk intersections to install these cameras at, with the necessary signage informing the public of the camera. The pilot program would last a year and people would be issued warnings through the mail for red light violations, the warnings would not include fines or citation and would not go on someone driving record. 'The registered owner of the vehicle would receive a warning that said, Hey, your car was captured going through this intersection illegally. We're letting you know that we're monitoring this and we're studying this situation,' the sponsor said. There is an option for fines for repeat offenders, which is up to the discretion of the person who would be issuing the fine. The maximum amount for the fines would be $130. Fitisemanu added that the purpose of this program is to help gather information to help the state move forward knowing better how to reduce red light incidents. He said there are many stories of people getting injured or killed in red light incidences but being able to back up these stories with hard data will be more powerful. 'If we can back that up with actual data of how many people are running these lights every day? That times of the day are peak violation times? Where are these major violation intersections? How fast are people flying through these? That's going to give us a lot of powerful information to make good decisions, and that's what I'm most excited about this,' Fitisemanu said. The pilot program would not be fully automated. After the photo of someone running a red light is captured, it would go to a police officer to review it and then decide whether or not to send out a warning. 'That allows people to then face an accuser, right? There's an actual human eyes, a human a person with human eyes were reviewing this. It's not an automated system,' Fitisemanu said. The cameras will be taking photos of the back of the vehicle, so it will not capture the faces of people in the car, they are just focusing on the license plate. Fitisemanu said he has worked with the state privacy officer to make sure they can keep all data safe that is gathered through this program. Technology has also improved over the years, which will help this program run more smoothly and accomplish its goals without causing unnecessary problems. 'I hope eventually, the outcome is a reduction or an elimination of people getting hurt and killed because of red light crashes,' Fitisemanu said. 'That's what I would love to see.'
