A further 1500-plus were evacuated from Mataura. Hicks admits he got little to no sleep that night fearing what could unfold. As day broke, a light was shone on the enormity of the situation. A handful of houses and businesses in Ontario St and Toronto St were flooded, while the flood banks along other parts of the river in Gore were at capacity. The community quickly rallied at St Peter’s College to fill and then deliver sandbags in a quest to protect vulnerable homes and businesses in preparation for the worse. However, as the rain eased so did the tensions in the eastern Southland town.