The Thames-Coromandel District Council says Cyclone Hale has done millions of dollars of damage.
Mayor Len Salt says the cyclone has left a tough financial burden on a small region.
Photo: supplied
The Thames-Coromandel District Council says Cyclone Hale has done millions of dollars of damage.
Initial assessments show the east coast, particularly between Cooks Beach and Matarangi, is the hardest hit.
Staff and contractors have already started fixing and fencing off infrastructure that is unsafe, and removing debris.
And on Facebook, the council said it expected the overall repair bill “will run into ‘serious’ six figures” but it did not have exact numbers.
Mayor Len Salt told RNZ that was a tough burden for a small area.
“There is an impact on our people, there is an impact on ratepayers, and the extent of that at the moment, we just haven’t quite assessed fully.”
He had initially expected the damage to be worse, but “we’re looking at some fairly significant numbers” Salt said.
Initial assessments show the east coast between between Cooks Beach and Matarangi to be the hardest hit by Cyclone Hale.
Photo: Supplied/Thames-Coromandel Council
“We’re a mid-sized council with a fairly small permanent-ratepayer base, but fairly high visitor numbers, particularly through the peak holiday season …
“Essentially we begin by looking at the council reserves that we have [to cover storm repairs]. But we’ve also got to talk to the central government, and we’re in the process of doing that at the moment with the minister for civil defence,” he said.
“What we’ve got is [damage to] shoreline and coastal areas adjacent to council infrastructure, which is getting uncomfortably close in some areas.”
Damage to a walkway and bank facing the shore.
Photo: Supplied/Thames-Coromandel District Council
Salt said that the district had had a record-breaking 800mm of rain so far this year.
“Normally, we’d be out until May, before we get that level of rain. The hills are saturated, we are still subject to potential for slips on a number of the roads. So it’s something we are concerned about. We’re watching closely.”
Thames-Coromandel is preparing for more large swells next week, so some repairs to reshape beach accessways are on hold.
“That’s not great news for us, Salt said.
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