State Highway 35 between Okitu, north of Gisborne and Ruatoria has been closed following surface flooding along the highway and a heavy rain warning in place.
Metservice has issued the orange heavy rain warning, for Tairāwhiti, specifically north of Tolaga Bay.
At this stage, the warning’s due to stay in place until tomorrow afternoon.
Dangerous amounts of surface flooding have led to the decision.
“Safety of all road users and contractors is always our number one priority. And while we want to keep our network open, safety comes first.” says Tairāwhiti / Hawke’s Bay Journey Manager Andre Taylor.
“We don’t take the decision to close stretches of highway lightly. Cyclone Gabrielle has reiterated how important it is to ensure the safety of road users and contractors on the network remains the top priority.
“The situation will be reassessed from first light tomorrow.
“We know the closure is frustrating, coming so soon after SH35 access was restored last week with the opening of the Hikuwai Bailey bridge. It’s been a challenging time for communities along SH35 and we want to thank people for their continued understanding.
“If people are out travelling around other parts of the region, we’re asking them to keep an eye on the forecast before travelling and be safe out there.
“That might mean delaying your travel, or if you do need to use the roads, driving to conditions and being mindful of other road users. Even if the roads haven’t been flooded, they might be wet and if that’s the case they will be slippery,” says Mr Taylor.
“Please keep an eye on Waka Kotahi Journey Planner for any updates.”
Journey Planner is updated 24/7 by Waka Kotahi traffic operations centres, and is the best source of the most recent and reliable information available on state highway closures and disruptions. Remember to refresh the page when checking the status of highways to ensure that the latest updates are displayed.
