You can never have enough...

[JanW]

Awful afternoon - went out to help my sister to her house to see what has been salvaged which was very little - the water mark on her chimney is over 7 feet of water - but her little cottage stayed strong - her sense of humour is still intact she made a comment about putting in bigger windows and glass doors was obviously a big mistake .The young men who came along to evacuate her were restoring the nearby marae - turns out they are on a scheme run by the awful Brian Tamaki - on the day one of them had a plastic bag he scooped everything off the dresser in her bedroom and grabbed as much as he could from the bookcase in her lounge which miraculously included some photo albums and the old bible my great grandmother brought out from England he held the bag above his head until they got to the boat - by this time the water was up to her chin - luckily the dogs swam behind the boat and made it to the marae - so he saved all my Mum and grandmothers jewellery I have often said to her that she should give it to her grandchildren and daughters .While she has been away these young guys pulled everything they could out of the mud and took it along to the marae - some of the plastic bins have very little water in others have to be dumped .Her car was there when she left on Saturday just the rear end was sticking out of the mud - today it had gone she is presuming civil defence pulled it out to check if anybody was in it .The wooden chest of memorabilia belonging to her daughter who was killed when she was 16 was gone and so much of Mums stuff .The smell is appalling .My neice hasn’t been back to her house I am worried about her - the looting of her property was just too much .Those young blokes have been all over the district helping - -evidently Tamaki funds the scheme obviously has nothing to do with its success .Anyway my sister has ordered a small transportable home which she will put on her granddaughters property - it’s between Bulls and Ohakea - it will work out well actually she has 3 great grandchildren who leave home every morning at 6am to enable the mother to get to school on time in Palmerston she is a special needs teacher - so the kids will go to a local school and my sister will have a purpose.She is a lecturer at the local EIT - every year she threatens to retire well it’s happened I think !
It’s been absolutely amazing to see the community rallying around - places like Craggy Range who charge about $200 for a main meal are cooking up meals and taking them out every evening then on the other hand the looters are still busy - they stole a generator last night from a house above the Esk Valley the little girl living there is on 24 Hour oxygen .Robie just locks the doors when they turn up at the supermarket - they are bringing formula and nappies in by helicopter but the mob just take as much as they can carry and walk out
The forecast is for heavy rain tomorrow let’s hope they are wrong