Disruption Following Earthquake: Tuesday 15th November
Update on EQ disruptions: Tuesday 15th November – issued 10:15 AM
We are very pleased to confirm that all warehouses nationwide are fully operational, and orders were processed yesterday with a very minimum backlog despite the challenges. Our warehouse teams have undertaken contingency plans to manage the additional challenges and will be back up to date from all sites as of COB today.
Transport still remains the largest disruption for our clients. The key points to note are:
- Severe damage to rail lines in the Seddon and Kaikoura districts on the Picton to Christchurch line has been reported by KiwiRail. It is estimated a repair timeline will be measured in months, making this route inoperable for some time.
- Transit NZ (Road) has not provided a statement concerning the same route. It is expected that similar or longer repair timelines will emerge over the next few days as engineers carry out further assessments.
- Coastal options are underway with Pacifica and alternative Internationally-flagged vessels between Auckland to Lyttelton and return.
- Our transport partners have limited access via the Lewis Pass from this morning for a period of time to allow a (normal + 3 hour) transit
- Normal road and rail services throughout the North Island have resumed in almost all cases
- Services throughout the upper South Island still remain a work in progress, with no current route from Blenheim to Waipara (includes Kaikoura)
Additional transit times will be expected over the course of the next few days, as our courier and transport partners work through the above.
All inbound container deliveries in our Christchurch warehouses have been restored from Lyttelton with the first containers arriving on sites Tuesday evening.
Consideration of holding stock in both Auckland and Christchurch maybe prudent to achieve your customers delivery expectations and negate the impact of the above over the coming months. For more information or to discuss this or any urgent issues please get in touch with either:
Sam Stokes [email protected] / 021 311790 or
Guy Evans [email protected] / 021 288 1119.
We will provide more updates as they are issued.
The Management at Online Distribution very much appreciate our customers patience, and the efforts of our teams and freight partners during this difficult and dynamic situation.
