Newshub has gone behind the Edgecumbe cordon to show you what happens once the sun goes down.
While residents are being allowed in during the day, the township goes under lockdown after dark. Police patrol the streets to keep properties safe.
On any normal night around 1600 people would be sound asleep in the homes around Edgecumbe.
But this situation is far from normal as the entire town is shut off, too dangerous to live in.
Instead, blue and red emergency lights flicker along the streets the Edgecumbe night patrol.
Police dogs and their handlers try to sniff out traces of anyone who shouldn't be inside and military police with torches skirt around houses to check for any signs of disturbance.
And as well as local security officers, there are around 15 to 20 police and military staff patrolling the streets.
Police Shift Commander Dennis Murphy said he thought it was "probably one of the safest places in New Zealand.
"When you take into account the number of police we've got; military and police dog handlers and security staff.
"It's like the Bermuda triangle really. People were here one minute and gone the next."
Police say people have tried to get through the cordon at night but are turned away. Nobody gets in or out.
Newshub.
