EXTREME & ERRATIC WEATHER EVENTS
August 2, 2007
by Michel & Jane DeRidder

Just three months after what had been termed a 'once in a hundred year flood' centred in the Bay of Islands, the whole of Northland NZ was battered by a vicious and destructive storm, when a rapidly deepening 'egg beater' wx system brought a deluge and extraordinarily high winds, far stronger than forecast. Much of the area from the northern tip of the country down through Whangarei, Auckland, and the Coromandel was declared a disaster area. The storm's effects were felt all the way to Hawkes Bay.

Dozens of roads were closed by floods and uprooted trees. Electricity was cut to well over a hundred thousand homes. Huge swathes of farmland were flooded, roofs blown off, water and sewage systems compromised. Helicopters dropped food parcels to stranded communities. Some dairy herds went un-milked for three or four days, perhaps more. Six days after the storm some homes were still without electricity. Surprisingly, those worst affected by loss of power were on Auckland's North Shore. Some owners of re-flooded properties in the BOI area - in Kaeo for instance - who were unable to renew their insurance after the March flood payout, lost a great deal of their life savings.

Fortunately Kiwis are resourceful folk. Many had portable generators, BBQs, gas or wood cookers, stocks of water, oil lamps, fire places, candles. Farmers came out in their tractors to pull off trees blocking roads. Linesmen worked around the clock - when the wind died to manageable levels, that is, and where road access made it possible.

Tahiti wingsail catamaran Te Marama after the July 10 Extreme Storm whose carbon fibre wing sail flew off the deck, leaving the people in the cabin unscathed, and landing on shore, where it exploded.

Boat owners were not spared. Dozens of boats up and down the east coast broke or dragged their moorings and ended up ashore, six in Parua Bay (Whangarei) alone. In Kerikeri's Doves Bay marina, boats were damaged when lines parted or stretched, or fenders were blown out of place. In Opua, the 100-year-old vessel IRIS dragged and ended up, soon minus her bowsprit, bow to the CANTERBURY, an ancient frigate waiting there to be sunk in the Bay of Islands as a diver destination. Six boats were driven ashore in Opua in high winds that lasted several hours. One chap in trying to fend off his boat suffered a broken ankle. A couple of boats we were told disappeared entirely in the Sandspit area, where gusts of over 90 knots were recorded at the end of the wharf. (At Tiri Tiri Maitangi Island in the Hauraki Gulf gusts of 96 knots were recorded.)

Newspaper photo of boat being driven ashore in Parua Bay, Whangarei. (From The Northern Advocate.)

A P&O cruise ship captain who chose to leave Auckland for Port Vila in Vanuatu on the afternoon of the event, finding himself in eleven metre swells and storm force winds, tried unsuccessfully to shelter behind Great Barrier Island. Six days later, the PACIFIC STAR arrived in Port Vila with a load of seasick passengers and a damaged ship, unable to continue the cruise. The vessel underwent some repairs on the spot before leaving for Brisbane for more major repairs. The 1200 passengers were flown back to Auckland on charter flights from Vanuatu, New Caledonia and Fiji. Some passengers called it "a holiday from hell". A few termed it "the adventure of a lifetime."

All was well with us; we kept warm and cozy aboard. The current in the river got up to 3 knots or more but the debris was not nearly as bad as last time. We decided to stay put because, with the wind from an easterly quarter at a reported 50 knots (gusting over 70 at times out in the bay) we did not want to go out. Our spot in the river is quite sheltered from the NE to SE, but we did get some weighty gusts beam on, and the swells from outside came in a little. Offshore swells were 5 meters, according to wx pundits. For a while we had 2-foot standing breaking waves in the centre of the river alongside Magic Dragon, but nothing on our dinghy side. The dinghy had to be bailed many times during the day. We were able to get on line to get weather info but our Vodem dongle was very slow downloading. Eventually the radar rain map from Auckland did not come through anymore. There was plenty of excitement on VHF with several Maydays, but nothing serious as it turned out.

One side of our bunk got wet (Michel's) because we had not properly closed the hatch above it. We had in place our light acrylic hatch with elastic hinges, which is normally just fine in any rainy weather. We usually switch to the heavy solid sea-going hatch to pop out and about. We'd talked about switching, but forgot, so the driven rain snuck underneath it. Everything else was dogged down ready for the worst. It's our brains that really need the dogging down.

In the morning we checked out the dinghy jetty and Cardiac Track. There were several trees across the track, one a massive Coast banksia, one a banana tree with a large bunch of bananas sitting on our path. The sound of chain saws enlivened the day. Little Uf, our faithful station wagon, did not need bailing. How long can our luck last?

We are warned to expect more of these 'erratic weather events'. Certainly they are occurring the world over, many far more horrifying than ours here. Are these a wake up call, a preview of what is to come? Meanwhile, the days have turned sunny and calm with the passage of a High, and we are again out in the bay enjoying a mid-winter cruise.

More often, the river is calm.