Hawke's Bay river monitoring equipment stolen

A river monitoring system in Hawke's Bay was stolen while Cyclone Vaianu was bearing down on the region.

Hawke's Bay Regional Council said the equipment was stolen from the Mohaka River between 10pm and 11pm on Sunday.

The monitoring system stopped communicating with the wider network during the cyclone, prompting regional council staff to investigate, and file a police complaint.

Hawke's Bay Regional Council said the river monitoring site formed part of its regional monitoring network. It was used to track river levels, flow rates and rainfall across the region.

It added the information from this network was critical during significant weather events to help assess river behaviours, flood risk and potential impacts on the community.

The council's chairperson, Sophie Siers, said the theft was "unbelievable and completely unacceptable".

"Stealing essential monitoring equipment during a cyclone directly undermines our ability to keep communities safe. After what Hawke’s Bay went through during Cyclone Gabrielle, anyone involved in this should be ashamed – this isn’t just theft, it’s putting lives at risk."

The council said replacing the system would be expensive, and it is now assessing options to restore monitoring for the part of the river.

More on this topic

Vandalism at Taranaki monitoring stations 'putting lives at risk' - council

The warning follows damage to a monitoring site on the Waiwhakaiho River, the second time the site had been targeted in three months and the third since it was installed in 2020.

New Zealand

Thu, Jan 22

1:30

People with information on the theft are asked to contact police.

In January, 1News reported on repeated vandalism and theft from weather monitoring stations in Taranaki. At the time, the Taranaki Regional Council also warned the activity could be "putting people's lives at risk", and delay warnings to the public during severe weather.