Rural people in North Otago are being warned to be prepared to be isolated for up to three days, after flooding closed roads for the third time in a fortnight.
Waitaki district council spokesperson Michael Voss told Checkpoint 25 roads have been closed and a further 30 are threatened by rising water.
Mr Voss says the ground is completely sodden from several weeks of rain and council staff are struggling to keep up with the pace of the water.
North Otago farmers are struggling to keep their stock safe from the double threat of flooding and snowfall.
Rain over the past three weeks has left the ground sodden and a further deluge is expected to inundate paddocks overnight on Monday.
At the same time heavy snow is expected fall to 1000 metres in Otago and Canterbury.
North Otago Federated Farmers president Richard Strowger says this all comes just as cows are calving and ewes are about to lamb.
Ground 'can't take any more water'
Waitaki District Council's emergency services manager, Chris Raine, says many roads that contractors worked hard to reopen last Friday after the most recent rains are flooded again.
He says it is frustrating roads are closed again after only 20 to 30 millimetres of rain, but the ground cannot take any more water.
MetService is forecasting up to 150 millimetres of rain to fall around the East Otago hills to midnight on Tuesday.
The Otago Regional Council has warned 65 farmers along the Shag and Kakanui rivers the rivers could break their banks.
