Some of the students helping out on farmland badly affected by the cyclone. Photo: Supplied / Fencing Contractors Association
A group of volunteer students say they will work "bloody hard" to finish re-fencing a 30 kilometre stretch of farmland in Hawke's Bay this week.
Three Primary Industry Academy students from Canterbury have combined with the Fencing Contractors Association (FCANZ) to help with the overwhelming amount of work following Cyclone Gabrielle.
Student Aidan Christie said while he comes from a hill country farm, he learnt fencing through the academy and works for a contractor in his school holidays.
The deputy head boy of Geraldine High School said it was a no-brainer to travel to the region to help those in need.
"We haven't seen the worst it because most of the mess has been cleaned up around here, but you can just tell all the grass is regrowing through silt.
"We're now putting up a new fence line where there was one before but it's been completely washed away, so yeah it's pretty bad."
Christie said all the volunteers were raring to go.
"Everyone's keen to give back and just help the farmers get back to farming so there's a bit to do but we're going to give it a damn good try."
FCANZ president Phil Cornelius said they were able to assemble the army of volunteers as part of their "Help a mate, buy a gate" campaign.
"We all saw the awful images during the floods and in the immediate aftermath, but now, three months on, those in cyclone-hit areas are living with the everyday reality of the sheer scale of damage. It's just overwhelming for many people.
"Our aim is to deliver as much high-quality rural fencing as we can in two days and take some of the load off for local landowners and fencing contractors alike."
In addition to the building of fences, the Hawke's Bay Primary ITO team will be offering training opportunities as part of the New Zealand Certificate in Fencing (Level 3).
This will allow those who have had their employment disrupted by the cyclone to learn rural fence construction basics and potentially work with local fencing crews.
Cornelius said FCANZ will continue to fundraise to bring more skilled volunteers back in the late spring.
"The reality is that the sheer damage to the area means that it will be some time until the full scale of the rebuild is known.
"Reinstating permanent fencing in the region can't start until the silt and debris have been cleared, this is just the start - we will be back."
Masses of slips that have torn their way across hill country in the Hawke's Bay, in the days immediately after Cyclone Gabrielle. Photo: RNZ/ Sally Murphy
