Piano Flat News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Mayors are touring Southland this week in a bid to get rural people vaccinated against Covid-19.

Power outages have been reported in Freshford, Glenaray, Piona Flat and Waikaia after a car crashed into a power pole shortly after 1pm on Sunday afternoon.

Roading contractors work on Block Road, near Waikaia, on Friday morning. Road damage because of flooding in the past week is estimated to cost the Southland District Council about $300,000 to repair. Contractors have been working to repair damage after heavy rainfall in the headwaters of the Mataura and Waikaia Rivers caused them to burst their banks on Sunday, and further rainfall caused another flood in the Waikaia catchment on Tuesday night. While most roads had reopened, there was precautionary signage on flood-affected roads throughout the district will remain in place until water diss...

In summer, Waikaia's population swells as holidaymakers visit. There’s a pub, a shop and café, a hall and a rugby club, a school with two classrooms, a golf course and a campground, but most of the houses in the tiny village are holiday homes. It’s the kind of community where everyone knows everyone else. The valley is home to high country stations – Glenaray​ Station on one side, Argyle and Glencairn stations on the other, with smaller sheep and beef farms spread across the valley floor and into the foothills. The usually sedate Waikaia River meanders down through lush farmland...

However, staff have been unable to get through for a thorough assessment of the site, Fleming said. “We will know more about whether repairs are needed and how long the sites may be closed after that.” The department had concerns about potentiall damage to the Waikaia River Track swing bridge and flooding at the Piano Flat campsite toilets, Fleming said. Apart from Piano Flat, they were unaware of any other damage caused by the recent floods, he said. Last year, heavy flooding in February caused damage to more the 78 tracks on public conservation land in the southern South Island DOC...