Tasman residents who have spent the last month in clean up mode have been hoping today's rain doesn't cause the same devastation seen in recent weeks.
People in the district have endured two large floods and repeated orange heavy rain warnings, since the first flood caused widespread damage on 27 June.
Dovedale has been hit by more rain in the latest weather event. Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii
Upper Moutere farmer Murray Silcock said it had been a worrisome few weeks.
"Most farmers here were very nervous, not only farmers, the whole community is just wondering where we're heading now into the future with low lying land and flooding in houses, not just paddocks."
Murray Silcock Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii
Silcock is a bull beef farmer near Dovedale. He said his farm could handle 100 millimetres of rain in one go, and on Tuesday afternoon it had already received about 60mm.
Today's rain forecast - two weeks after the last flood that saw his calf-rearing sheds damaged by floodwater and inundated with silt - had him feeling anxious.
"The first one softened everything and did a lot of damage, a lot of sediment, a lot of fences knocked over, then along two weeks later comes the second flood and it just played havoc."
Since then, Silcock said they had been busy cleaning up.
Farmlands had been supportive, organising a bulldozer and fencing gear, helping to coordinate recovery work along the Dove River and getting silt cleared out of the sheds before 2000 bobby calves arrived later this week.
It has been a worrisome few weeks for farmers in the area. Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii
A fifth-generation farmer, having farmed in the area his whole life, he said it was the wettest winter he could recall.
"When I looked in the diary a couple of weeks ago, it was around about 1100 mm over the last three and a half months, which is a lot of rain in this area, because a lot of that actually fell over two weeks."
He estimated the clean up, building fences, reinstating culverts and fixing slips would take 12 months and cost around $200,000, only some of which would be covered by insurance.
'People are pretty stressed'
Further south at the Civil Defence centre in Tapawera, lead welfare officer Kelly Russell - who has lived in the district for nearly 30 years - said this was also the worst winter she had experienced.
"We've had a couple of years where we've had a little bit of rain, a little bit of flooding, but nothing compared to this."
The centre was open for anyone needing to drop in for support and would remain staffed overnight,
"People are pretty stressed, there's a lot of damage in different places, the last thing we really need is more rain. It'd be nice to have a bit of sunshine but we're all hanging in there doing what we have to do, that's what you do when you're in the country."
Russell said the repeat nature of the floods was difficult to deal with and she was "definitely over" the rain.
"You're constantly thinking, 'are my stock safe? Is my land safe? Am I going to lose anything this time? It's hard."
She was hopeful the rain would not come to much and the settlement would not experience flooding again, this time around.
Tapawera NPD shop manager Sarah Jacobs said after the back-to-back floods, many in the community were exhausted.
"There is definitely a sense of anxiety and fear in the air, but as I keep saying, preparation is important and this has been a really good opportunity to be prepared for other events that should happen, like earthquakes or any natural disasters."
Sarah Jacobs Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii
Jacobs said it was important people had emergency kits, ready to go.
"I learned that myself the hard way as I was evacuated in the first flood and had very little with me and it was four days before we could get out...so it's definitely raised a great awareness to be ready and prepared for any disaster."
The petrol station lost power for about 18 hours in the first flood and was unable to provide anyone with fuel, which included emergency services, and Jacobs said they were now exploring back-up systems to ensure they could continue to operate during future power outages.
She said the community was still facing a big clean up that was likely to take months, if not years.
"The mud and the silt and the sand that's just been dumped in places, it's heartbreaking and you get stuck in it and it smells."
"We're definitely over it, we're looking forward to some warmer weather and some sunshine... we're ready to put this behind us now."
Dovedale hit by more rain in latest weather event Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii
Tasman mayor Tim King said after a briefing this morning with MetService, the forecast had improved slightly and there was no longer a high chance of it being upgraded to a red warning.
He said those in areas previously affected by flooding remained at risk and should be prepared, which included staying elsewhere if they felt unsafe.
Nelson Tasman Emergency Management duty group controller Rob Smith said the region had "stood up really well today".
It remains under a heavy rain warning until at least 10pm, with some parts until midnight.
MetService said the peak of the weather had passed in Golden Bay as the weather system moved to the east.
The emergency operations centre in Tasman would continue to monitor the weather overnight.
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