Alden Williams/Stuff
A Heathcote River flooded Tuesday night after a car was washed away.
One person has been rescued from a crashed car washed up in a flood-swollen Christchurch River, and two helicopters have been dispatched to rescue other trapped drivers in North Canterbury and Otago.
Emergency services were called to Ashgrove Tce in Somerfield just before 8pm on Tuesday after receiving reports of a car crash into the flooded Heathcote River.
A police spokesperson said there was one person in the vehicle, but he has since been rescued.
They were now in the care of St. John, they said, but the vehicle was now completely submerged.
READ MORE:
† Evacuations, slip roads and roads closed despite less rain than feared for Canterbury
† Mayor is confident the flood-prone Christchurch River will not burst its banks
† Heathcote River stabilization work almost half way
Do you know more? Send an email to [email protected]†
Another vehicle was stuck in the riverbed of the Okuku River at Birch Field Rd in North Canterbury.
Police said a helicopter had been dispatched to pick up the driver shortly before 9 p.m.
Another helicopter was sent to a vehicle that became trapped after 9pm in the flooded Silver Stream in North Taieri, just outside Dunedin.
Police said St John had also been warned. It is not known how many people were in the car.
Alden Williams/Stuff
Emergency services along a flooded Heathcote River after a car was washed away.
Much of the country has been ravaged by wild weather all day while a storm raged across the land†
High water increased flooding in areas in Christchurch and Banks Peninsula, leading to further road closures, the Christchurch City Council said.
To the south of the city, portions of Riverlaw Tce, Waimea Tce, Gould Crescent, Ford Rd, McCormacks Bay Rd, Cumnor Tce, Connal St, Clarendon Tce, and Richardson Tce were closed.
There were also complete road closures for Palatine Tce and Alport Place.
Christchurch City Council said floods were expected to cause flooding on roads around the Heathcote River area until the tide clears.
KAI SCHWOERER / Things
A woman walks past a flooded Hunter Terrace in Christchurch.
In the northern areas, parts of Brenchley Ave, Emmett St, Orcades St, Harrison St, Carrick St, Avondale Rd and Thornton St were closed.
Earlier on Tuesday afternoon, the council said Cambridge Tce from Barbadoes St to Churchill St was closed due to flooding, as well as Fitzgerald Ave, heading north from Kilmore St to Bealey Ave.
By 8:30 p.m., several roads on the Banks Peninsula were also closed due to flooding and skidding. These include Pigeon Bay Rd from Duvauchelle Stock Route to Summit Rd, Pipers Valley Rd from number 18 to Summit Rd, Purau Port Levy Rd from number 737 to Western Valley Rd, and Tizzards Rd.