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A recent landslip in Waiwera, which closed the road and triggered evacuations, has renewed calls for pine trees on the hill to be removed.
The slip, which occurred on April 24, sent a tree and debris tumbling from a roadside reserve above Hibiscus Coast Highway, damaging three units within the Waiwera Coach Trail Villas complex. Police evacuated residents from 18 properties as a precaution, while Auckland Council assessed the affected area. No buildings were red stickered or officially classified as dangerous, which meant residents were permitted to enter for repairs.
Attention has now turned to the stability of the hillside and whether prior risks were known. Auckland Transport (AT) confirmed that no full geotechnical assessment had previously been conducted on the hill but, a desktop review had indicated a low susceptibility to landslides within the road corridor.
Villas resident Dave Preston said it was a miracle no-one was hurt in the recent landslip and the trees near the edge of the escarpment need to be removed before someone was killed by a falling pine hitting the road or other buildings.
Preston believes a slip in the same location two weeks earlier may have contributed to the tree falling.
“They came and cleared it, but that was a wake-up call. If they had surveyed a little closer, they might have seen that there was a possibility that the tree could come down.”
An Auckland Transport spokesperson says a geotechnical investigation of the April 24 slip site is being done to determine the cause and identify possible remediation options.
They said historical data showed only one comparable slip in 2015, about 200 metres from the recent slip, where fallen trees temporarily blocked access. That area remains stable today.
Cleanup costs for the current incident have been estimated at $134,000.
Parks and Community Facilities general manager Taryn Crewe said that no formal complaints or service requests were recorded for the specific site prior to the slip.
She acknowledged that broader discussions about the area had occurred, particularly regarding an informal track used as a potential tsunami evacuation route.
The land from which the slip originated is managed by Auckland Transport, while the informal track is not maintained by either AT or council.
Council is urging residents to use formal reporting systems, such as the council’s “Report a problem” tool, to ensure potential hazards are logged and acted upon.
