• Rewatu Road - OPEN with extreme caution. There is still flooding across the road. (See current - Road status)
• Bay of Plenty Regional Council have issued another update from their Flood Room.
  - Whakatāne River is slowly receding to its normal river channel.
  - Spilling at the Matahina Dam will stop.

• Reid Road is now OPEN
• See current - Road status

Here's a snapshot of the state of our roads across the District:

⛔️ Valley Road - CLOSED due to slip (between Alexander + Arawa)
⛔️ Stanley Road - CLOSED due to multiple slips
⛔️ Rewatu Road - OPEN with extreme caution. There is still flooding across the road.
⛔️ Reid Road - CLOSED due to flooding
⛔️ Te Tawa Road - CLOSED due to flooding
⛔️ Te Kooti Road - CLOSED due to flooding and tree across road (inaccessible)
⛔️ Ōwhakatoro Road - CLOSED due to flooding
⛔️ SH2 Waimana Gorge - CLOSED due to multiple slips
✅ Tāneatua Road - OPEN with caution due to flooding
✅ Awahou Road - OPEN with caution due to silt
✅ Selwyn Road - OPEN with caution due to flooding
✅ Downards Road - OPEN with caution due to flooding
✅ Ranapia Road - OPEN with caution due to flooding
✅  Wainui Road - OPEN for essential travel only due to flooding
✅ Galatea Road - OPEN with caution due to contractors on site
✅ Tahuna Road - OPEN
✅ Ngamotu Road - OPEN
✅ SH2 White Pine Bush Road - RESIDENT ACCESS ONLY
✅ SH2 Nukuhou North - RESIDENT ACCESS ONLY (access reinstated for Nukuhou residents and Waimana residents via Matekerepu/Wainui Road intersection)

• SH2 Waimana Gorge - REMAINS CLOSED
  Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency Waikato BoP has advised Waimana Gorge remains closed between Station Road, Taneatua and Wainui Road, Kuturere. 
• At this stage we do not have an estimated opening time. We will continue to keep you updated with this situation.

• Reid Road - REMAINS CLOSED
• Awahou Road - OPEN
• Aroha mai / apologies for any confusion. Access to Rūātoki is via Awahou only at this stage.

• Kerbside rubbish and recycling services in Rūātoki and Waimana are postponed. Aroha mai / apologies for this. We will provide a catch-up service on Saturday. If there is any change to this, we'll let you know.
• Whakatāne and Tāneatua rubbish services will operate today as usual.

• Awahou Road - NOW OPEN. Access has been restored to Rūātoki.
• The road is still very messy with silt all over the road so caution is needed. A big mihi / thanks to all the crews who worked super hard to make this happen 
• Valley Road - Remains CLOSED at Alexander Avenue/Arawa Road due to a large slip.

Mōrena e te whānau, we're back today with rolling updates to keep you and your fam safe and informed.

At this stage, there are no changes to the road closures listed in the below updates. We will continue to update this post throughout the morning as the situation evolves.

• Gorge Road slip now cleared.

• Gorge Road - BLOCKED. A large slip has just come down blocking both uphill passing lanes. Crews are on their way.
• Tāneatua Road - OPEN with extreme caution. The road is still flooded in a few spots (particularly Red Devon’s Corner and back towards the start of Taneatua Road). Traffic control will remain on site near the flooded areas for your safety until the water subsides. Please only use this road if absolutely necessary.

• Stanley Road - CLOSED at the 10km mark (Wainui end). A large slip has just come down and the road is impassable. 
• Stanley Road - also remains CLOSED at the Waimana Gorge end (near the forestry road gate) due to a slip.
• Assessments are underway on various slips across the District including at West End Road, Valley Road, Commerce Street, Tāneatua Road, Pohutukawa Avenue and Hurunui Avenue.
• A boil water notice remains in place for Rūātoki until further notice.

• Revised: SH2 - White Pine Bush Road - OPEN for resident access ONLY (this includes Tāneatua residents). Please note, due to a high volume of spectator traffic moving through the area, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency Waikato BoP has advised the road is open only to those requiring access to their homes.
• Please stay off the roads if at all possible. There are multiple hazards across the District and our crews need space to reinstate access safely.

• Te Tawa Road - CLOSED
• Owhakatoro Road - CLOSED
• Wainui Road - OPEN for ESSENTIAL travel only.
• Stanley Road - OPEN for resident access only.
• Te Kooti Road - OPEN for resident access only.
• Reid, Awahou and Rewatu Roads remain closed and will be reassessed first thing tomorrow morning (Thursday 4 May).

For those in central Whakatāne who were limiting their wastewater use, you're now able to resume normal services. This means you can flush your loo, use your washing machine, and wash your dishes. Thanks very much for your patience and cooperation - it allowed our wastewater systems a chance to catch up

• Tomorrow's kerbside services in Rūātoki and Waimana may not be possible if roads are not open and safe for the trucks to operate. 
• If we can't get to these areas tomorrow we'll try to service them on Saturday. We'll keep you updated.
• Awakeri to Tāneatua - NOW OPEN via SH2 White Pine Bush Road.
• Waimana Gorge will remain closed overnight (Wed 3rd May) from Station Road within Tāneatua to the Wainui Road intersection.

Please note, Council has not requested anyone in the Whakatāne District evacuate from their homes, schools or workplaces.

If anyone feels unsafe, we encourage you to self-evacuate to friends or family / whānau, however, this is up to the individual and not a request from Whakatāne District Council.

• Galatea Road - Now open for essential travel only. Slips are passable with caution. Crews are on site.

• Blueberry Corner - surface flooding, drive with caution
• Matatā Straights - substantial potholes, drive with extreme caution

• Waste Management are a number of drivers and staff down today due to road closures.
• Kerbside Services will be completed but they will be running late – please be patient. 
• If your bins get blown over please pick them up.
• If you can delay visits to refuse transfer station please do so.

• Wainui Road - Please drive with extreme caution. The road is currently under stop/go however there is extensive flooding near the S bends, and over the bridge near Te Kooti Road.
• Gorge Road - Drive with caution, slip
• Tahuna Road - Drive with caution, slips
• SH2 Awakeri to Matekerepuru - CLOSED due to flooding, powerlines down and slips.

The rain has continued to fall overnight and there are multiple issues right across the District. We will be updating our channels throughout the day so please keep a close eye on it to help keep you and your whānau safe.

The key pieces of information are:

• Please stay off the roads if at all possible. There are multiple slips and areas of surface flooding and we simply do not have enough signage available to alert you to these areas
• Ruatoki - BOIL YOUR WATER until further notice.
• In central Whakatāne, particularly from north of Domain Road – that is the Pohutu catchment – please limit use of wastewater if at all possible. This means don’t flush your toilets, limit shower use and let the dishes and washing pile up til further notice. The system is overloaded with rain water
• Whakatāne River has reached its second warning level which means the river is rising but is still contained within its banks. There is no immediate concern, and Bay of Plenty Regional Council is monitoring this and all rivers across the District closely.