Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell and Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger provide an update on the flood recovery efforts in Canterbury. Photo: RNZ/Nathan Mckinnon
The Minister for Emergency Management and Recovery has praised the community response to the severe weather over the last week.
Christchurch and Banks Peninsula are still in a state of emergency after torrential rain hit the Canterbury region, while households across Wellington, Wairarapa, and Manawatū remain without power following a rare "threat to life" warning with the strongest wind in over a decade.
"As a country, we've always had these weather events - particularly people in the South Island, they're used to water and rain. However, they are becoming more intense and severe," Mark Mitchell told Saturday Morning.
"Communities are becoming more and more sensitive to that, and realising that as a country to strengthen our response and be more resilient, it's not just central government, local government or regional government, or our first responders - it's a whole of community response."
Mitchell said he could see a difference between when he first became the Minister for Emergency Management and Recovery to now.
He said those in Canterbury had told him that there was good communication, and the Civil Defence teams had done a "very, very good job in terms of responding early to their needs".
The local state of emergency has lifted for Selwyn, and Mitchell said the main concern was now the surface flooding, which was "starting to abate".
Old Tai Tapu Road near Christchurch on Friday. Photo: RNZ/Nathan Mckinnon
"I'll be out checking, making sure that, first of all, residents are taken care of and they can identify clearly what needs to be done in terms of infrastructure and property damage. I'm on standby from central government to support once I've been able to identify that," Mitchell added.
He also said power companies had been working "flat out" to restore power to households across Wellington, Wairarapa, and Manawatū.
There was also work underway for a new Emergency Management Bill to replace the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002, which Mitchell said was out of consultation.
"I want to make that absolutely fit for purpose."
Ferries operating again
Meanwhile, the Interislander ferry Aratere was the first of the Cook Strait ferries away from Wellington this morning, heading for Picton.
Interislander and Bluebridge ships were kept at their berths from Wednesday because of high swells from the southerly storm.
Interislander says it is putting on additional sailings on Saturday evening and Sunday morning.
The full weekend schedule is here.
Bluebridge says it has added additional sailings to its schedule today.
These are the 1.30 sailing this afternoon from Wellington and the 7.15 this evening from Picton.
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