7 May 2026
LGOIMA 26-049 Alex B
[FYI request #34039 email] Tēnā koe Alex
Request for information Apologies for the delay with responding to your request and thank you for your patience.
On 11 March 2026, you made a request under the Local Government Official Information
and Meetings Act 1987 (LGOIMA – the Act) for the following:
I am requesting copies of business records and correspondence regarding the burst
pipe event on Thompson St, Mount Cook on Friday 13 June 2025, and the subsequent
effects on properties further down the hill in the Victoria St / Cuba St / Karo Drive
vicinity in particular:
1. Any reports on the incident including downstream effects in the area noted above
2. Internal communications between WW personnel pertaining to the incident
3. Communications between WW and Wellington City Council pertaining to the
incident
4. The time when the burst main was first reported
5. The time when the burst main was understood to be leaking into the sewer system
6. The time when any sewage overflow events were observed in the Victoria St /
Cuba St / Karo Drive vicinity
7. The time when the decision was made to isolate the burst water main
For reference, this was the initial media release pertaining to the incident in
question:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wellingt
onwater.co.nz%2Fabout-us%2Fnews-and-media%2Fnews-and-media-2%2Fboil-
water-notice-issued-for-thompson-street-mount-cook-wellington-
city&data=05%7C02%7Cofficial.information%40wellingtonwater.co.nz%7C9a620159
ff53410f895508de7f48b7c8%7C7ada94a2255d414ea98ba7ef6453451a%7C0%7C0%
7C639088147632592362%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRyd
WUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%
7C80000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=fD0DBQOKoyFOfrnoBgmnr05BKwEBZtZ0W82GS86aSZ
U%3D&reserved=0
Your request is responded to in accordance with the Act. Please refer to the appendix on the
following page that responds to your individual questions.
Please note that it is our policy to publicly release our responses to official information
requests where possible. Our response to your request may be published at
https://www.wellingtonwater.co.nz/about-us/official-requests/official-information-act-
responses/ with any personal information removed.
If you wish to discuss this decision or request with us, please feel free to email us at
[Wellington Water Limited request email] You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision.
Information about how to make a complaint is available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz
or freephone 0800 802 602.
Nāku noa, nā
Chris Fleck
Group Manager
Network Operations
APPENDIX 1. Any reports on the incident including downstream effects in the area noted above
The information requested is withheld under sectio
n 7(2)(g) of the Local Government Official
Information and Meetings Act 1987, as it is subject to legal professional privilege.
We have considered whether, in the circumstances, the public interest in releasing this
information outweighs the need to withhold it. We do not believe that is the case.
2. Internal communications between WW personnel pertaining to the incident
Following a search of the relevant data, we identified approximately 18,000 records. To
meet your request, we would need to:
• Review and redact any sensitive information
• Remove any duplication
• Validate that the released information is accurate, consistent, and within the scope
of your request.
Given the results from the IT search, on 24 March 2026 we emailed you advising of the
following:
With respect to points 2 and 3 below, an IT search generated close to 18,000 results.
Each result may contain multiple pages. Due to the extensive and complex nature of
reviewing this volume of material, we would need to refuse your request under
section 17(f) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, as
the information cannot be made available without substantial collation or research.
2. Internal communications between WW personnel pertaining to the incident
3. Communications between WW and Wellington City Council pertaining to the
incident
Therefore, to enable us to process your request and provide a meaningful response,
we will need you to refine or clarify the scope of these parts of your request.
As we did not receive a response from you for some time, and given the extensive and
complex nature of the task, we have refused your request under sectio
n 17(f) of the Act.
The information requested cannot be made available without substantial collation or
research.
On 22 April 2026, you refined your request and advised “
With respect to items 2 and 3 of my
initial request, please ignore those two items and proceed with the remainder of the items in
the request.”
3. Communications between WW and Wellington City Council pertaining to the incident
Please see the above response to 2.
4. The time when the burst main was first reported
Our system shows the first signs of an issue came in from Wellington City Council afterhours
call centre 23:51 on 11 June 2025. The calls reported loss of service and low water pressure.
5. The time when the burst main was understood to be leaking into the sewer system
Discovery of the Thompson Street leak entering a wastewater manhole was identified on 13
June 2025 at a manhole located outside on Thompson Street.
6. The time when any sewage overflow events were observed in the Victoria St / Cuba St /
Karo Drive vicinity
• A toilet overflowed at a property in Victoria Street at 20:13 on 12 June 2025, and at
10:56 on 13 June 2025
• There was a wastewater overflow on the footpath at a property on Victoria Street on 13
June 2025
There were no calls received for wastewater overflows on Karo Drive or Cuba Street during
the incident, just the 3 calls for Victoria Street mentioned above.
7. The time when the decision was made to isolate the burst water main
The water was first turned off, or isolated for repair at 15:30 on 12 June 2025. Please note
that the water main was off and on from the upstream valve throughout the day as we
worked to locate the burst and then undertake the repair. There is a bottom valve, which is
a shut valve, so this was always shut.
