There are 190 Auckland Council building inspectors out across Tāmaki Makaurau today continuing to assess damaged buildings and property following the extreme weather that has hit the region.
Since Saturday, more than 2300 rapid building assessments have been completed and Auckland Council expect there are between 4000 to 6000 properties still to be assessed.
Auckland Council Chief Executive Jim Stabback says there has been a massive effort by staff and contractors to respond to Aucklanders.
“We are so grateful to everyone who has been involved in assessing flood-damaged buildings and getting support to those who need it most.
“As of today, more than 160 red notices have been issued, which means a building is not safe to enter and has sustained moderate or heavy damage. More than 650 buildings have received a yellow sticker which restricts access because of moderate damage.
"I want to acknowledge those Aucklanders who have homes that have been damaged during the floods, and the stress and heartache this will be causing.
“So that our staff can prioritise assessments to flood-impacted properties and critical infrastructure, we’ve cancelled all non-essential building inspections through until 7 February.
“We realise this may be frustrating for people wanting to progress their building work, and we appreciate everyone's patience and understanding during this time,” says Mr Stabback.
“Since yesterday, nearly 180 tonnes of storm-related waste has been delivered to our transfer stations. Our staff have also been providing skip bins throughout the region and assisting people where they are dealing with extremely large amounts of waste,” he says.
While the next few days may bring a brief reprieve from the rain, Mr Stabback reminds people that sports fields are closed, and to stay off saturated ground in local parks.
“While we hope we have seen the worst of the weather, all of our sports fields are closed to give the sodden ground time to recover and allow any flood water to drain away. These are being reopened on a case-by-case basis."
"We are asking people to stay away from remote areas of our regional parks such as walking tracks because we are still assessing damage and we can’t guarantee your safety.
"Many local parks are still flooded so please stay away from saturated ground to protect yourself and the ground, and please don’t play in floodwaters," says Mr Stabback.
Several events scheduled for this weekend have either been cancelled or postponed due to a combination of weather conditions, wet grounds, and health and safety considerations. These are:
- Auckland Lantern Festival 2023 (Cancelled)
- Movies in Parks – Friday 3 February at Luckens Reserve, West Harbour (Cancelled)
- Movies in Parks – Saturday 4 February at David Lange Park, Māngere (Cancelled)
- Music in Parks – Friday 3 February at Luckens Reserve, West Harbour (Postponed to Friday, 17 February)
- The planned Tūrama installation on Queen Street (Cancelled). It will return to Queen Street in July 2023 for Matariki ki te Manawa.
- We expect to provide a joint update, with Manukau Urban Māori Authority (MUMA), on whether Waitangi ki Manukau will go ahead on Thursday 2 February.
Further information:
- Find out more about storm damage to Auckland parks and sports fields.
- Find out more about building inspections for flood-damaged properties.
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Information for customers about how to rebook inspections is available on the council website
- Find out more about where to dispose of storm-related waste.
