Mt Maunganui surf lifesaving club red-stickered following deadly landslide

Source: Radio New Zealand

Mt Maunganui’s surf livesaving club at the base of the mountain has been red-stickered after last week’s deadly landslide.

It’s one of four buildings on Adams Ave to have a red placard issued under the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act.

Tauranga City Council emergency controller, Tom McEntyre, said the notice did not mean a building must be automatically demolished.

“It means it cannot be used until it is made safe,” he said.

“The hazard is frequently being assessed by geotech experts and the placard may be downgraded if, after re-assessment, it is determined that the immediate risk to the building has been reduced.”

The surfclub was cordoned off with tall barriers, and a red sticker was visible on the door on Friday.

Lifesavers were working on the beach next to the cordon sorting through equipment.

Mt Maunganui Lifeguard Service said the club couldn’t be accessed because of unstable land on the mountain behind it.

“We have this morning been able to recover more of the Mount Maunganui Surf Lifeguard Service equipment, including our competitive and junior surf resources,” it said.

“This was undertaken by a small team stood up by the logistic group of our incident response team and was undertaken in a very carefully planned and monitored operation with the full permission and support of the Tauranga City Council, NZ police and local iwi.”

The club said it would mean members could continue with training.

The club was first evacuated soon after the landslide, with crews relocating core rescue equipment to a portacom nearby on the beach.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand