the rain came

Golden Bay/Mohua, here at the top of the south is a most amazing area. But today, after the rain there are slips and people who have had water streaming through their houses, there have been evacuations and roads cut. The road to town has a massive hole in it and is impassable and probably will be for a few days.

Stuff

Takaka township recorded 423mm of rain in a 24 hours period, making it "well in excess of a one in 100 year event", Civil Defence said. The previous 24 hour rainfall high was 256mm in August 1990.

Small communities have had their infrastructure lost and the cleanup has not even started yet.  I haven't heard of anyone hurt so that is good. A massive disruption just before the festive season. Yet on the world stage it wouldn't even rate a mention. Interesting to consider the macro and the micro - how a significant event for an individual is just that, same for a community too. When it all goes bad we will have each other, we will have community and connection and we will have to get on with the job, together. So we help pull people out of trouble - thanks mate, and we open our homes to people that need shelter, and we check up on people and make sure they are okay. We open up the marae and we hear about the people that have suffered loss and we prepare to help them. We are community.

We know about weather events related to global warming - they will become more severe, more random and more destructive. At every scale we will be going through more trials and tribulations and there is nothing we can do about that because the cycles and momentum of earthly change on ponderous scales have already started and they won't stop. But we can prepare and a big part of that is building community and connection. No doubt in calamitous times we are forced together but the more we practice, when we can, the better and we can learn from other communities about what works and what doesn't. Ultimately when it all hits the fan we do what we have to do to survive - we are all in this together.

loved ones lost

There are many people suffering catastrophic natural events around the world at the moment. In Australia there are fires in the west and floods in the east. The floods have wiped out communities and killed people. Are we going to become desensitised to all of the suffering. The floods, the fires, the earthquakes, the mudslides, the volcanoes, the snow, the droughts, the tsunami's and everything else going on. I don't think we will even if we try to because there are going to be more and more of these events and within all of them are people - like you and me - fighting for their lives and their loved ones. This story made me cry - the horrible last moments for this boy and his mother can barely be comprehended and even then it is just too much to fathom.

NZH

Toowoomba boy Jordan Rice, 13, has been remembered as a hero after he let his younger brother be rescued first, seconds before he and his mother Donna were swept to their deaths in the CBD.

Ms Rice, and sons Jordan, 13, and Blake, 10, were driving at the intersection of James and Kitchener streets about 2pm on Monday when they drove through water which at the time was only up to their car wheels.

However, their car engine stopped and Ms Rice called triple zero for help. She was unable to call anyone else as she had no phone credit.

The triple zero operator told the family to stay put and they were forced to climb on to the roof of their car after the floodwater rose rapidly.

A old scrawny guy grabbed a bit of rope, wrapped it around himself and jumped in," Mr Tyson said.

"Jordan can't swim and is terrified of water.

"But when the man went to rescue him, he said 'save my brother first'."

Mr Tyson, the father of the boys and partner of Ms Rice for 28 years said the man rescued Blake and tried to tie the rope around Jordan and Ms Rice but it broke.

They were swept downstream. The pair was able to briefly cling on to a tree, but was overcome by the force of raging floodwaters.

What a very brave boy. My heart goes out to Mr Tyson and his son that survived and to all families that have lost loved ones.

Within every disaster there are stories and accounts like this - for every person lost there are the family and friends left behind. The people lost are remembered and we are part of the remembering.

The water is still rising and this disaster is still unfolding. Kia kaha to all.