Whites Bay nearly ready for play
Rarangi Surf Lifesaving Club head lifeguard Brendon Ferguson is expecting a busy summer and has a keen team of lifeguards ready to keep swimmers safe. Photo: William Woodworth.
Local lifeguards, swimmers and campers are breathing a sigh of relief as Pukatea/Whites Bay reopens at midday Monday 22 December following Department of Conservation restoration efforts.
The popular beach had been closed since June, when storms washed out the area and turned Pukatea Stream into a raging torrent, until reopening on Monday, 22 December with a community BBQ jointly supplied by Rangitane o Wairau and Ngati Rarua.
Head lifeguard Brendon Ferguson says losing access to the clubhouse and training site was the hardest part, but reopening has brought excitement back to the club.
“This was my 20th or 21st season. I’ve seen high tides and heavy rainfall, but honestly it was an impressive sight to see the whole pathway washed out and water flowing for days after.
“We got sent through quite dramatic photos of the lawn out the front here, but the worst we had in the buildings was a little bit of water through the back walls — nothing we haven’t been able to fix up with a mop and a water blast.
“DoC has been getting the place back up and running, and particularly in the last month while collecting training gear and checking on stuff we’ve seen a lot of work to get it ready and up to standard.”
Repairs led by the Department of Conservation included reinstating roads and pathways to the beach, as well as restoration and protection work on the creek including a new levee aimed to keep any future floods within the existing channel.
Fortunately, the Rarangi Surf Lifesaving Club clubhouse and its contents escaped major damage with inaccessibility being their main challenge since June.
However the closure has meant Brendon has plenty of volunteers for patrol, with lifeguards on duty every day from 26 December through to 4 January, 11am to 5pm, then weekends after that.
“Our junior surf guys have been struggling away at pools or in Picton for their Sunday sessions, just keeping them fit and occupied, but they’re all really looking forward to coming back out to the beach, having nice sand and the waves.
“The storm has given the place a bit of a reshape with the path being washed out — it’s a bit wider, which is quite nice for us to get RIBs down.
We’re all excited to have everyone back on the beach and enjoy a busy summer out here with the river being shut - just need the weather to play its part.”