Northland was one of several rohe around the motu to feel the wrath of Tāwhirimātea in recent days, with whānau living along the Ngāti Wai coastline and inland communities heavily impacted by severe weather.
The Whangārei District remains in a state of local emergency following significant storm damage, particularly in Whangaruru and Ōakura. Heavy rainfall on Sunday forced residents in both communities to evacuate.
“Huri i te ākau roa o Ngātiwai, puta atu ki te motu o Aotea kua raru katoa i tēnei āhuatanga,” says Aperahama Edwards of Ngātiwai.
“Ko ētahi kāinga, he kino kē atu i ētahi, ā, ko Whangaruru tonu kei te pūtahi nui o te whakaaro, otirā o mātau whanaunga kei te Motu o Aotea.”
Whangārei District Council says there is currently no road access into affected areas due to a major slip on Russell Road at Helena Bay Hill and a bridge outage north of Ōakura. Twenty-two homes were evacuated yesterday
Local marae in the Whangaruru area have played a crucial role as civil defence hubs and safe havens for evacuees, providing accommodation, food and essential facilities.
‘He iwi manawaroa’
Huhana Lyndon has been helping with recovery efforts all week, and says the impacts also raise broader questions about long-term planning and resilience.
“Me pēhea tātau e awhi, e akiaki, e arahi i a rātau, kia whai oranga kia whakapaipai i te whenua.”
“Ko tētahi o ngā raru ko te noho kōpani o tō tātau iwi ki te takutai moana. Nō reira koia te pātai ki ngā mahi a ngā kaunihera, a te Kāwanatanga - me pēhea te whakatutuki i tētahi mahere, he mahere mahi tahi ki te iwi?”
Lyndon also acknowledged the difficulties faced by vulnerable whānau.
“Ētahi he hunga tūroro e noho ana i te kāinga,” she adds.
“He iwi manawaroa ki Whangaruru nei, ki Te Rawhiti hoki. Me tō rātau kaha ki te awhi i a rātau anō.”
Kei te noho mohoao tonu ngā hapori
Te Rawhiti Marae was previously landlocked after a landslip blocked road access between the marae and surrounding communities, including Kaingahoa, Te Tawa, Hauai and Kaimarama. The slip near the marae has since been cleared, and the highway to Kororāreka is now open. However, travellers are advised to take caution as some sections of road remain reduced to a single lane.
For some residents, returning home is still not possible.
Jeannie Poutai of Ngāti Hau says access issues have left her stranded.
“That’s my driveway, my house is on that side,” she said, pointing across the river.
“But as you can see in the last two, three days, since the start of the rain, the purpose of me not being on that side cause I get stranded and I’ve got mahi to do.”
Helena Bay local Guy Hatchard watched on in shock as the hill above Russell Road came crashing down.
“We heard trees snapping during the night. We’ve had heavy falls continuously through the night, and then we came down here at first light, and we actually saw the big rock fall come down, and then about half an hour later, there was another big rock fall,” he says.
“People from the council were here, but it’s too difficult, the situation, to do anything about it right now.”
Weather conditions are forecast to improve, with Emergency Management teams working to establish alternative access routes while supporting impacted residents.
The public is being urged to avoid all unnecessary travel into the area.
