Tauranga homeowners affected by slips in Maungatapu are being urged to liaise with the insurers and EQC.

Around 13 homes have been affected by slips in the Maungatapu area in the past 12 months, with the most recent one being in the last week.

Tauranga City Council regulatory and compliance general manager Sarah Omundsen says there are also older slips which are continuing to move, and also slips which do not impact houses such as around esplanade reserves or walkways.

Since early 2022, a number of slips have occurred on the Maungatapu Peninsula, which has broadly corresponded with periods of higher than average rainfall, says Sarah.

She says the cliffs around the Maungatapu Peninsula have a long history of slip events in general, as do other parts of the city.

'Over the past 12 months, 13 homes have, to our knowledge, been directly or indirectly affected by slips on Maungatapu Peninsula with the most recent slip occurring last week.

'There are also older slips which are continuing to move, and also slips which do not impact houses such as around esplanade reserves or walkways.”

Following Cyclone Gabrielle earlier this year, two homes were directly affected by a land slip.

While a state of emergency was declared following the cyclone in February, Sarah says none of the above mentioned homes were impacted while Tauranga was under a state of emergency. None were red stickered.

When not under a state of emergency, councils are able to take action to ensure that buildings aren't dangerous and don't cause serious harm to people or property under the dangerous building provisions of the Building Act 2004.

Red placards (commonly referred to as red stickers) are one potential outcome of a Rapid Building Assessment completed under the CDEM Act 2002 but can only be utilised while an area is under a state of emergency.

'Where slips occur on private property we will work with the property's owners to assess if their property is still safe to live in and in the case of the slip associated with Cyclone Gabrielle we issued one dangerous building notice.

'Where recommended by our engineers, we will also continue to monitor a slip and prepare any geotechnical reports. It would then be the property owner's responsibility to liaise with their insurer and EQC around next steps beyond this.”

Although slips on privately owned land would fall to a property's owner to address, Sarah says if council land or assets are affected we might consider taking steps to repair a slip.

'Given the continued wet weather, we would remind everyone that slips are possible and to self-evacuate and phone emergency services if you feel you are in danger.”

People who have any non-urgent concerns are invited to call council on 07 577 7000 or email info@tauranga.govt.nz