Five weather-bomb affected homes on Whangārei’s north-east coast have been red-stickered.
By Susan Botting for Local Democracy Reporting
Local Democracy Reporting understands the affected homes were mostly at Ōakura.
Red stickers meant entry was prohibited and owners couldn’t go back into their houses to pick things up or check them out.
Whangārei District Council building inspectors carried out 34 rapid building assessments in the weather, slip and flood-affected area on Friday, January 23 and Saturday, January 24 – with stickers issued to indicate whether, or how, a building could be used.
Rapid building assessments were quick safety checks carried out on homes and buildings after an emergency such as flooding, slips, earthquakes or severe storms. They were used during a Civil Defence response to decide whether buildings were safe to enter or live in.
The red-stickered homes were deemed unsafe to enter to occupy, or at risk from an external hazard such as a slip.
A Whāngarei Civil Defence spokesperson said the homes were among 34 assessed properties in the affected coastal area.
A summer’s worth or rain fell on the affected area in only a few hours on January 17 and 18.
Ten houses have also been yellow-stickered.
Yellow stickers mean the property was restricted and could not be used, or that entry was possible but only for a limited time and if under supervision or on essential business.
Part or all of a yellow-stickered building may have sustained moderate damage, or some areas of the building, neighbouring buildings or land instability pose a significant risk.
Nineteen homes were white stickered.
The white sticker did not mean the building was completely safe or has suffered no damage. But it could still be lived in as long as people were on the lookout for damage.
Rapid building assessments were carried out by trained council building inspectors, engineers or assessors.
The 10-20 minute check focused on life safety rather than full structural compliance and were usually the first step before detailed engineering reports.
Assessors checked out aspects including land instability or slip risk, flood damage undermining foundations, structural cracking or movement, dangerous debris, falling hazards and contamination.
The assessments were done under the Building Act 2004 as part of the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act response.
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