Wellington City Council said this was incorrect and that their staff and contractors responded to requests within two hours, regardless of weekends and public holidays. He invited the man to his apartment nearby to clean off and sent him home with a fresh crayfish. In 2012, a drunk man died after falling head-first into a storm drain in central Wellington in a failed attempt to retrieve his car keys. Peter Black, 43, drowned in the drain and his body lay there for a full day before members of the public found him. While entering a storm drain isn’t illegal, the council strongly advised people to call its contact centre in an emergency.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 23, 2026 04:22 UTC