A person has been hospitalised after being swept out to sea by huge swells in Wellington.
They have been rushed to hospital with moderate injuries.
Wellington City Council says the enormous waves have forced road closures.
"Most of the road between Breaker Bay and Owhiro Bay is now temporarily closed to traffic due to debris being thrown onto the roadway by the waves," said council spokesperson Richard MacLean on Wednesday.
The enormous swells have caused power outages in the area due to infrastructure being damaged.
A storm to the south of the Chatham Islands is causing the freak waves and forecasters say it could peak again on Wednesday night.
High tide will strike again at 11:30pm and police are on-site monitoring the situation.
It's recommended people avoid beaches in the south and east of New Zealand throughout the whole of Wednesday and into Thursday.
