Snow hits Southland hard

Monday, 20 September 2010

The weekend's snow storm has affected large parts of Southland and more is yet to come, Southland District Mayor Frana Cardno said.

"It has hit our southern areas quite hard and farmers are working to save stock. The problem is that it's not over yet, with more bad weather predicted until Thursday," Mrs Cardno said.

"But I know Southlanders are a resilient lot and will pull together to support and help each other," she said.

Fallen branches and trees are blocking the Waikawa Valley and Tokanui-Haldane Roads at the moment and crews are inspecting them. The Southern Scenic Route from Owaka to Niagara remains closed but is being inspected.

Meanwhile, the collapse of Stadium Southland on Saturday was shocking and a great loss to all of Southland, Mrs Cardno said.

"We are so very lucky that no lives were lost.

"It's really important to get behind both the present and the past stadium trustees, a group of volunteers who have given their time freely and worked diligently to provide us with such a fantastic stadium.

"The stadium belongs to all of Southland and has provided us with many memorable moments. There's a lot of work ahead but I am sure the rebuilt stadium will give us many more and it's important we all club together to restore this brilliant facility."

Who to contact

If you would like to discuss a matter on this page, feel free to contact us:

Southland District Council
P.O. Box 903
Invercargill 9840
Phone: 0800 732 732
Fax: 0800 732 329
emailsdc@southlanddc.govt.nz