WHAT was meant to be a retirement dream home turned into a cold, damp, flood-damaged nightmare for a Te Kūiti couple last weekend.
Floodwater ripped through Duke St during the historic storm which plunged the Waitomo district into a state of emergency – including right into the home Dennis
Bennett shares with his wife.
On Saturday morning, Dennis opted for a rare lie in and checked his property at about mid-morning.
He estimated there was about 10mm of water pooling on top of his front lawn and returned inside to make breakfast.
By the time he finished eating, the water level had risen drastically to above his deck and into his house.
“The water was running over our feet,” he said.
The couple moved into the house two years ago with the view of renovating it during their retirement.
Those renovations had already started before the floods, including new carpet being laid about 18 months ago.
After being swamped in water an inch high, the carpet had to be removed and areas of the home would need to be retiled, Dennis said.
He suspected the interior walls were also water damaged and would need to be assessed.
Water flooded the external portion of the couple’s heat pump, breaking it.
The couple had under floor insulation installed after they purchased the home, but it absorbed and held onto flood water, causing further damage to the underfloor. “It’s 1930s-style living – bare boards,” Dennis said.
Despite the home being made cold and damp by the floods, Dennis said he and his wife would be staying put.
They were concerned if they left, the “light fingers” would come around and steal their belongings.
One of the obvious culprits of flooding in Te Kūiti was the rapidly rising Mangaokewa Stream which broke its banks and spread onto surrounding roads. But Duke St is nowhere near the river.
Dennis blames one of Waitomo District Council’s stormwater drains about 75m from his boundary for the water that poured into his property.
He described the drain as inadequate and insufficient.
“It’s a joke.”
Making culverts has been a major part of Dennis’ working life and the existing drain simply wasn’t big enough in his opinion.
He estimated the drain needed to be double its current size to prevent flooding like that at the end of last month.
Extending the wing walls appeared necessary too, Dennis said.
He could not see why, if an “insufficient” council-managed stormwater drain caused the flooding, he should be expected to use his insurance.
“I don’t see why we should pay.”
Last week, Dennis visited Waitomo District Council to make a claim against its insurance, since he viewed the council drain as the problem which caused damage to his house.
He was told it was not possible for him to make such a claim.
Waitomo District mayor John Robertson said the council did not have insurance for private properties and he did not foresee the council taking on liability for any damage caused during the storm.
“It’s up to private insurance. Councils don’t insure private properties.”
But in coming months the council would be reviewing various aspects of the storm, including how flood damage could be better mitigated for future weather events, he said.
John expected reports to be compiled and presented to the council at its end of March meeting.
Part of the investigations would be into trying to work out what systems did not cope in the weather, which John said had been reclassified as a once in 250-year event – though he thought it was important to prepare for floods to become a more frequent occurrence in the district.
In a Facebook post this week, the mayor said the council would be investing to upgrade Te Kūiti’s stormwater network, based on knowledge gained in last week’s storm regarding where pressure points are.
