WELLINGTON (Reuters) – More heavy rain is expected in the next few days in flood-ravaged Auckland, officials said on Monday. events so far.
Four people have been killed in flash floods and landslides that have hit Auckland amid record rainfall over the past three days. Auckland is in a state of emergency. The state of emergency has been lifted for the Waitomo region south of Auckland.
Flights to and from Auckland airport are still experiencing delays and cancellations, stranded thousands of passengers, including hundreds from overseas, flag carrier Air New Zealand said. (AIR.NZ) said Monday.
Beaches around the city of 1.6 million will be closed and all schools in Auckland will remain closed until 7 February.
New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins told state broadcaster TVNZ on Monday that “the damage across Auckland has been enormous”. “Clearly, many homes were damaged not only by floods, but also by massive earth movements.”
About 350 people are in need of emergency accommodation, he added.
looming clouds
The national weather service is forecasting more heavy rain to hit the already drenched city late Tuesday.
“More severe weather is expected and we need to be prepared for it,” Rachel Kelleher, Auckland’s head of emergency management, said at a news conference.
[1/3] Flooded areas during heavy rains are seen in this screen grab taken from a social media video on January 27, 2023 in Auckland, New Zealand. @MonteChristoNZ/via Reuters/file photo
Fire and emergency services received 30 calls Monday night, including in response to a landslide when a carport slid down a hill.
Congress has designated 69 homes as uninhabitable and off-limits. An additional 300 facilities were deemed at risk, and access to certain areas was restricted for a short period of time.
A La Niña event is bringing more rain than usual to the northern North Island of New Zealand.
According to the National Institute of Water and Atmosphere Research (NIWA), Auckland has already recorded more than eight times the average January rainfall and 40% of the annual average rainfall.
Insurance companies face large claims
Decontamination costs are expected to exceed the NZ$97m ($63m) flood bill on the west coast in 2021, while the estimated NZ$31bn for the two major Christchurch earthquakes is not as high as the insurance cost of 2010-2011 New Zealand Insurance Council spokesperson Christian Judge said:
of Insurance Australia Group (IAG.AX) The New Zealand division has received more than 5,000 claims to date and the Suncorp Group (Sun Ax) It said it received about 3,000 claims across its Vero and AA insurance brands.new zealand tower (TWR.NZ) It said it received about 1,900 claims.
In a statement, IAG said: “We expect the number of claims to increase further in the coming days as the case is still ongoing and customers identify damage to their property.
Economists say vehicles and household items will need to be replaced, and recovery and reconstruction will increase inflationary pressures in New Zealand as more construction work is needed to repair or rebuild flood-damaged homes and infrastructure. said it is possible.
($1 = 1.5385 New Zealand Dollar)
Reported by Lucy Kramer.Edited by Aurora Ellis and Lincoln Feast
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