Prayers as floodwaters threatened

Confronted by a torrent of waist-high water and needing to cross a flood-swollen stream to their 4WD to escape, the Tupaea family prayed to God to save them.

Travis and Melaney Tupaea have described their family's terrifying escape early on Saturday morning after a raging torrent swept through the Conservation Department camping ground they manage at Waikawau Bay, at the north end of the Coromandel Peninsula.

Mr Tupaea had been woken about 2am by the sound of the floodwater from a nearby stream: "I heard a roar, a huge noise from the valley woke me up – like a big explosion."

Hours of heavy rain had caused a landslip.

Springing out of bed, Mr Tupaea found himself ankle-deep in water.

He woke his wife and children, Brooke, 12, and Charlie, 5, dashed to the door, and found a "raging torrent just going past".

"When we walked out, we were in waist-high water. We were just surrounded by water, and all I could think about was getting the kids out," Mrs Tupaea said.

She said the family, who are Mormons, said a quick prayer and asked God to save them.

"That was the first thing we did. I think we were watched by someone, to help us get to the car," she said.

They leapt into their water-filled Toyota Prado: "By then, there were trees and posts and everything flying past us, and we managed to just idle out ... the car was wanting to stall," Mr Tupaea said.

The Prado began floating downstream. The family feared for their lives.

Mr Tupaea's training as a 4WD driver saved the day. The vehicle's wheels gained enough traction and made it out of the swollen stream.

They drove to the safety of Little Bay, where the clouds cleared to reveal a starry early summer sky.

Yesterday, the family were cleaning up at a debris-strewn camping ground. Mrs Tupaea said they had lost a lot of possessions but "it could've been a lot worse".

- © Fairfax NZ News