Civil Defence

And while the mop-up is underway for residents in Mataura, locals are rallying together to muck in and help.

RNZ reporter Sarah Robson put her gumboots on and went to check out how it's going. Audio

The clean up is underway in Southland after days of flooding and some people are just starting to understand the extent of damage to their homes and towns.

Authorities in Southland say up to 30 homes… Audio

The Emergency Management Agency says good weather will allow them to start cleaning up as people return to their homes in Mataura.

It's the last evacuated town to be reopened in Southland after the… Audio

Emergency Management authorities in Gore say the town dodged a bullet, with flood defences standing up to the challenge of record flows down the Mataura River.

Not everyone came off unscathed though… Audio

The Gore District Council says it wants to speed up the removal of ouvea premix stored at a paper mill near Mataura, after flooding almost reached the substance.

When saturated with water, ouvea… Audio

Researchers want emergency planners to think bigger and prepare to isolate New Zealand from the rest of the world in a global catastrophe.

The government is focused on coping with a pandemic virus… Audio

Some residents of Mataura are returning to their homes after flooding caused the town to be evacuated on Wednesday.

Heavy rain caused the local river to swell to dangerous levels, inundating… Audio

Some Mataura residents are heading home after flooding hit the town on Wednesday.

The local river swelled due to heavy rain and threatened to burst its flood defences, forcing the evacuation of… Audio

Some Mataura residents have returned home only to discover they face a massive clean-up job.

The town had been a no-go zone for two days amid fears of flooding and the potential release of toxic… Audio

Gore and Mataura have been evacuated as the Mataura River peaks, while the nearby town of Wyndham is also on notice to evacuate as the water draws nearer.

The Mautara River peaked in Gore around… Audio

Tomorrow the country commemorates 180 years since the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Each year, February 6 is an opportunity to pause, and take stock of where we stand and how far we have to go.

… Audio

Most of the residents of the town of Mataura have been told to leave as soon as possible as the river neared its peak.

After three days of heavy rain the river is running between four and six metres… Audio

Gore and Matuara residents living in low level areas have been told to evacuate.

This after hundreds of people in the Southland towns have had an anxious night after being told to prepare to leave at… Audio

People in the Southland towns of Gore and Mataura have been told to evacuate their homes as the Mataura River levels continue to rise.

After three days of heavy rain the river is running between four… Audio

People in the Southland towns of Gore and Mataura have been told to evacuate their homes as the Mataura River levels continue to rise.

After three days of heavy rain the river is running between four… Audio

Southlanders have been pitching in helping stranded tourists after flooding cut off State Highway Six, south of Queenstown. 

Laura Douglas - from the small town of Kingston at the bottom of Lake… Audio

Gore and Matuara residents living in low level areas have been told to evacuate.

This after hundreds of people in the Southland towns have had an anxious night after being told to prepare to leave at… Audio

Firefighters in Canterbury working to control scrub fires are being challenged by the hot, dry, and windy conditions this morning.

Two helicopters and several crews are battling two fires in Loburn… Audio

Heavy rain has closed State Highway 6 south of Fox Glacier and caused power cuts in south Westland.

MetService is predicting further heavy rain to fall on the West Coast until Tuesday night.

The… Audio