Services around the North Island are working together to ensure the safety of communities. Rain and wind continue to challenge rescue efforts as the cyclone makes its way down the country. The heaviest rainfall overnight was in Piha and Muriwai beaches, which saw 265mm of rain in just four hours. Last night 113 people spent the evening in civil defence centres.
Fire and Emergency had 18,000 storm-related incidents reported. Urgent, life-threatening situations will continue to be prioritised. Firefighters were helping in Muriwai when two crew members got caught in a landslide - one firefighter was rescued and is in hospital, the second has yet to be found.
The New Zealand Defence Force has been assisting with evacuations, moving emergency supplies and requests for help. They are currently assisting evacuations in Napier and are planning to visit Dargaville later today. Combined efforts saw a missing boatie safely found and aboard the HMNZS Te Mana.
Watercare has asked that residents in Murivawi, Helensville and Wellsford put restrictions on their water usage. Between 15,000 and 20,000 customers are without power and more outages are expected this evening.
In Auckland, at least 80 roads have been closed, there have also been 206 calls about other unsafe road conditions. There is currently 500 personnel out assessing roading network damage.
