hawke's bay regional council

Hawke's Bay Regional Council is asking the National Emergency Management to help cover some of the costs from Cyclone Gabrielle.

The Council is facing an $885 million repair bill, and wants NEMA to chip in $56 million.

Councillor Neil Kirton says the Council could claim back multiple costs - but they're being challenged.

"The air travel by helicopter, etc. to service isolated communities, now we've got NEMA saying- look, we're not going to pay for a whole host of those helicopter costs."

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The Hawke's Bay Regional Council had defended their decision to not formally evacuate Esk Valley residents.

Low-lying regions were given notice to evacuate on Monday February 13 and the Regional Council didn't see the need for a formal evacuation.

The Regional Council says the rising floodwaters changed swiftly and were double what had been forecast.

Hawke's Bay Today editor Chris Hyde says the council should have evacuated the entire Esk Valley region in the lead-up to Cyclone Gabrielle, given the valley's history with flooding.

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