Okay, the storm on the weekend may not have been as bad as first predicted but still a huge amount of water fell as shown in the following photos.
I live near Lucas Creek in Albany which is a little creek that is affected by the tides in Auckland Harbour. Most of the time the creek runs low and for a few hours a day it rises enough that for around 2 hours you can paddle a kayak down it. However, sometimes after rain it does become a lot larger as water runs down the Albany hill from the Dairy Flat and Coatsville area. However walking to uni this morning was one of the highest levels I have ever seen the river at.
Photo taken at 11.30am
Photo taken at 2.30pm river has begun to drop.
Photo taken at 5.30pm river almost back to normal levels
This is the view from my house the other day in the midst of a major rain storm, however this shot was taken around two hours after the last rain had fallen and instead there was just complete stickiness in the air and a high temperature.
This second shot is of a more nicer day on my way to work walking through the local park:
I am a bit late in blogging this because I was away. But these were the conditions that I had to contend with when heading to the airport last Wednesday morning as a second large storm hit.
A bridge on SH17 between the Albany township and the Albany Tavern was underwater earlier today but reopened by 6.20am.
All lanes of Oteha Valley Road were flooded on the eastern side of the motorway but the road was passable, police said.
Press Release: MASSEY UNIVERSITY STUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION FEDERATION
Massey University dumps on International Students
From 2009 all new International Students studying at Massey University will face an immediate 6 – 7% average increase in tuition fees and ongoing annual tuition fees increases due to a removal in fee Grand-parenting for International students.
Fee Grand-parenting of tuition fees for International Students ensures that students do not face tuition fee increases throughout their course. Massey University introduced fee Grand-parenting in 2005 to give International Students stability in their finances while they study.
“The decision by the Massey University Council last Friday to remove these protections for students’ financial wellbeing will severely hurt international students” says Albany Students’ Association (ASA) President, Brad Heap. “This decision was made entirely behind closed doors; students had no knowledge of this move and the University did not consult with a single student on the changes.”
“Massey University has decided to put profits before pastoral care of students and I find this disgraceful. You would expect the University to have a social conscience and protect their students not dump fee increases on them without consulting them,”said Heap.
MUSAF is committed to ensuring that the University treats all students as individuals and does not treat its International Students as ‘cash-cows’. MUSAF will continue to work with students across Massey University’s three campuses to ensure that the University actively consults with students and in the meantime urges Massey University Council to reverse its decision.
