Drivers travelling on State Highway 60 between Richmond and Motueka were delayed today due to a free community event held by the Tasman District Council, which led to heavy traffic and significant congestion in the area.
The council put on the community event to celebrate the Step Out Festival by giving away free firewood and a sausage sizzle at Rabbit Island – however, significantly more members of the community turned up, blocking the roads and prompting outrage on social media.
"Good intentions but turns out a lot of wasted time and fuel for people. Better planning needed for sure!" said one social media user.
Another commented: "Can we leave then, we've been waiting 3 hours and now, and are stuck at the back of Rabbit Island with no way out," after the Facebook page announced that the free firewood had all been collected.
One disappointed individual said they had hired a trailer, then said they were turned away after waiting for an hour in the queue.
The Facebook page advertising the free firewood apologised to those who queued for hours, saying: "In case you missed the last post, the firewood event is now closed. Thanks everyone for turning out and we're really sorry for those who have missed out.
"The demand absolutely exceeded what we expected. We will be taking a lot of learnings from this event."
The firewood was given away in conjunction with forestry firm PF Olsen, with the Tasman District Council saying the event had two purposes: "Managing our slash, but also giving back to the community."
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