Flood-hit homeowners in Hawke’s Bay were told this morning whether they can safely return and rebuild their homes, three and a half months on from Cyclone Gabrielle.

Long-awaited zoning decisions were finally released to cyclone-impacted property owners mid-morning via email.

Some homeowners have been given the all-clear to return to their properties, rebuild, and move on with their lives.

However, others deemed to be in high-risk zones will have to wait a while longer to learn exactly what options they have available, including whether they can return home in the future or will need to relocate due to the flood risks.

Whirinaki resident Maggie Braviner was hoping to be placed in category one, so she could rebuild and return home. Photo / Warren Buckland

A large part of Esk Valley, a section around Tongoio Beach, and small pockets of Pakowhai, Rissington and Twyford have all been provisionally placed in the highest-risk category, which means those areas may need to be abandoned in the future for residential living.

Maps have also been released - for the first time - showing a breakdown of flood-hit areas and which risk categories each area has been placed into.

There are three risk categories (or zoning categories).

Properties in category one have been deemed safe to rebuild on, and those owners can now fix their homes and safely return home.

Provisional zoning for Pakowhai, just outside of Hastings. Photo / Supplied

Properties placed in category two or three are indicative only, meaning they could still be moved to another category in the future following community consultation, which will begin in mid-June.

Category two (which has three sub-categories) effectively means conditions will need to be met before a property is deemed safe to rebuild on (such as raised homes or improved stopbanks).

Category three properties will be deemed unsafe to return to and off-limits for living.

Whirinaki, just north of Napier, resident Maggie Braviner told Hawke’s Bay Today ahead of the announcement she eagerly wanted to be placed into category one.

“Definitely category one - we hope to be in that one. We would love to rebuild and love to return home.”

For those whose properties have been placed in category two or three, a lengthy process is still ahead to determine exactly what will need to happen for their properties to be deemed safe to rebuild on, or whether they will need to relocate due to the high flood risk.

Hawke’s Bay’s five councils, in collaboration with the Government’s Cyclone Recovery Taskforce, have been working on which areas should be placed into each category.

That risk assessment process was based on data from the regional council, Ministry for the Environment, and insurance company claims data.

A breakdown of the number of homes included in each category in Hawke’s Bay will be officially released at noon.