Clean-up will go on for months: Council
Waipā District Council is warning the clean-up after Cyclone Gabrielle may take months.
While impacts were felt across the district, chief executive Garry Dyet said Leamington in Cambridge was hardest hit. Trees on Lamb St and Carlyle St took the full force of huge winds, leaving “carnage”.
“We’ve got more than 100 trees across the district either destroyed or seriously compromised. It’s heart-breaking but I’m just grateful no-one was seriously hurt,” Dyet said.
“We’re mindful that compared to some parts of New Zealand, Waipā has got off pretty lightly. So, while we might be facing some inconvenience, we’re a lot better off than many others.”
Since last Tuesday, when the full scope of the destruction was revealed, Council has had five contracted crews and specialist arborists working “full noise” across Waipā. After resting on Sunday, crews will be back in the district this week.
The priority continues to be public safety including dealing with uprooted and compromised trees, clearing roads and accessways and releasing powerlines, buildings and fences. While most of the critical work will be completed over the next couple of weeks, less urgent work may stretch into April and possibly beyond.
“That means, if you have logged a job with us, unless the tree deteriorates further, please be patient and know we have it in hand,” Dyet said. “Our council team, and our team of contractors have done a phenomenal job under incredibly trying circumstances and I couldn’t be prouder.”
He also issued another plea for residents to stay away from unsafe and fallen trees and not take it upon themselves to cut firewood.
“The last thing we need is people wandering around with chainsaws – that’s a nightmare scenario. We’re very happy to leave firewood in piles for people to take away and we’re doing that as fast as we can. But having people come onto work sites is making the whole clean-up more difficult and slower so please folks, keep your distance.”
While most crews had some rest over the weekend, a massive 100-tonne crane was used to remove two gum trees behind the Cambridge Racquets Club at Lake Te Koo Utu on Saturday. In coming days, the focus will be on Lamb and Carlyle Streets in Cambridge with specialist equipment on site to deal with the massive quantity of debris.
In Victoria St in Cambridge, two Liquid-amber trees will be removed on Wednesday (February 22) from the centre traffic island. Work will begin at 6am and is likely to cause disruption for 4-5 hours. Traffic management will be in place and footpaths will remain open.
Dyet said calls, messages and queries had flooded into the Council during and immediately after the cyclone. The majority of calls involved trees, flooding or slips….”exactly the kind of things we needed to know about,” Dyet said. But some calls or queries were odd.
“One person rang to ask if swimming lessons at the local pool would still be on, despite the cyclone. Someone else rang to ask Council how long food in their freezer might last.”
“We had a complaint that showers were closed at the Cambridge Superloo. That’s despite the cyclone taking out power and water at that facility, so that was bit strange.”
A number of people also rang Council to complain about, or report, power outages – despite Council not being responsible for providing power. Those calls were diverted to Waipa Networks.
“All in all, we’ve managed to get through the week pretty well. But there is a lot of work ahead and we need our community to be patient so we can clean up as fast and as safely as we can.”
