The severe weather hitting the East Coast of the North Island has eased with all the warnings in place for the region lifted.
MetService said the red heavy rain warning for Gisborne and the Wairoa District has been removed while the orange wind warning for Gisborne, Wairoa and Hawke's Bay has also been lifted.
"Cyclone Fili continues to move away from the North Island. Wind and rain about Gisborne and the Wairoa District has eased this morning and all warnings are now lifted," MetService said.
"Be aware, there has been a lot of damage in these areas and although the weather has eased, people need to check with local authorities for ongoing issues."
Several homes spent the night without power, while many remain cut off by damaged roads but they're waking to clear skies on Thursday morning.
"Rain was still pelting down till around midnight and I can tell you we woke up this morning to a calm morning, so we are hopeful today we can continue the work to connect our community," Gisborne Mayor Rehette Stoltz told AM.
Stoltz said Waka Kotahi is trying its best to open roads as quickly as possible.
"We are asking people to check the Waka Kotahi website, as they [roads] progressively open they will update that on their map. It's really easy to follow and will be updating us as they go," she said.
Stolz said "there is still work being done" to restore power to homes in the region as there are still so many trees and power lines down.
She said the severe weather in the area hadn't caused anyone to be evacuated overnight.
"Yesterday late afternoon it was quite touch-and-go close to the Hikuwai River, we were alerting people that they might have to be evacuated but in the end, the river levels came down as we predicted so no mass evacuations like we had three weeks ago," Stolz told AM.
A flood warning is in place for the Hikuwai River with the two districts remaining under a 'red' weather warning.
NIWA said the rain would continue in northern Hawke's Bay and Gisborne overnight but will ease on Thursday morning and warned residents to expect extremely high river flows.
Waka Kotahi said State Highway 35 from Gisborne to Potaka on the East Coast is closed because of the adverse weather. It asked drivers to avoid the area or delay their journey.
MetService issued a red heavy rain warning for Gisborne from 8pm on Wednesday to 1am on Thursday warning residents to expect up to 40mm of rain in that timeframe.
"The rain is expected to cause dangerous river conditions and significant flooding. Slips and floodwaters are likely to disrupt travel, making some roads impassable and possibly isolating communities," the forecaster said.
Gisborne was also under an orange strong wind warning from 8pm on Wednesday through to 3am Thursday with MetService warning of gales up to 130km/h.
"Strong wind gusts could damage trees, powerlines and unsecured structures. Driving may be hazardous, especially for high-sided vehicles and motorcycles," MetService said.
The Wairoa District was also under a red heavy rain warning from 8pm Wednesday through to 4am on Thursday with MetService warning residents could see up to 70mm of rain.
"This will bring the total for the event to around 180mm about the Whareratas, with lesser amounts farther west," it said. "The rain is expected to cause dangerous river conditions and significant flooding. Slips and floodwaters are likely to disrupt travel, making some roads impassable and possibly isolating communities."
Hawke's Bay east of Wairoa was under an orange strong wind warning by MetService from 8pm on Wednesday through to 3am Thursday with gales gusting 130km/h in exposed places.
"Strong wind gusts could damage trees, powerlines and unsecured structures. Driving may be hazardous, especially for high-sided vehicles and motorcycles."
