A year after Gabrielle, coastal town struggles to find its feet

Last year, Wairoa, a small farming community on New Zealand's east coast, closed its only retirement home. It had been badly damaged in February's Cyclone Gabrielle and the cost to repair it, along with the risk of future flooding, was deemed too high.

- Serena Solomon

The town was struggling even before the cyclone. Its housing stock was poorly built and in short supply. The disaster damaged a third of its 1,500 homes, leaving many beyond repair. Some residents have moved back into homes without running water, working bathrooms and, in some cases, walls. Hundreds are estimated to be still living in temporary accommodation.

"There is a feeling of being forgotten," said Lewis Ratapu, general manager of Tātau Tātau o Te Wairoa Trust, a group that is helping Wairoa rebuild.

Wairoa is not alone. The cyclone killed 11 people and marked the worst storm in a century. About 1,600 homes across New Zealand remain uninhabitable while authorities decide what can be repaired, and what should be abandoned. There is a backlog of roads and bridges awaiting repairs. Questions linger over the country's infrastructure resilience and its emergency response to future weather events.

Dr Nick Wilson, a public health professor from the University of Otago, is pushing for a national inquiry into the cyclone's impact and New Zealand's emergency response.