The Nelson/Tasman and West Coast regions remain on high alert and are still under states of emergency and "red" weather warnings.
It comes after a further 10 properties were evacuated in Whakatū/Nelson overnight - adding to the 233 households forced out on Wednesday.
Nelson Tasman Civil Defence said it is possible more residents will be evacuated on Thursday.
The Maitai River continues to run high and as the rain keeps falling, authorities are now extremely concerned about water quality.
A $200,000 relief fund has been announced for the Nelson-Tasman region to help with the extensive damage caused by flooding, which may take years to fix.
What you need to know:
- A red heavy rain warning is in place for Nelson, Buller and Westland until Thursday night, with MetService warning these areas could still see more "severe" rain in the next couple of days
- The rain is expected to cause dangerous river conditions, significant flooding and slips
- More than 200 people were evacuated in Nelson overnight after the Maitai River breached its banks
- Buller Civil Defence asked 160 homes to evacuate on Wednesday night. Those residents were able to return on Thursday morning
- Multiple North and South Island State Highways are either closed or affected by the wild weather
- Other severe weather warnings are in place throughout New Zealand.
These live updates have now ended.
5:50pm - A statement from Group Controller Alec Louverdis:
"This event hasn't done with us yet unfortunately and some people may still need to leave their homes.
"Please be reassured that we are doing everything we can to keep people safe.
"If you see Police, Fire or Defence teams in town, they are working with us for people's safety.
"For those of you not in Nelson, we DO have people on the ground, including Golden Bay, and we have not forgotten you! but it is important that we get key safety information out where lives or property are at risk.
"Finally for now - a request from Police- please don't be a disaster sightseer! Stay away from rivers and bridges and respect the privacy and property of people who are hurting right now."
5:05pm - Nelson Tasman Civil Defence said it won't be possible for residents evacuated on Wednesday to return to their homes due to the ongoing heavy rain, land instability and the Maitai River remaining at high levels.
The civil defence said more evacuations have not been ruled out, however, if evacuations occur they will likely be on a smaller scale than Wednesday.
"If you need to evacuate YOU WILL KNOW IT- we will come to your door and tell you. You can still evacuate if you feel unsafe. If you can't go to friends and whanau, please go to Saxton Stadium."
4:30pm - Nelson City Council said raw sewage may have spilled from the wastewater networks due to the high volumes of stormwater.
While the overflows are minor, residents are urged to treat all water surface water as potentially contaminated and to wash their hands if they come into contact with it.
4:10pm - MetService has released its severe weather outlook for the weekend, with heavy rain expected to continue for the west of the country and then ease on Monday.
Heavy rain is expected to return to the western parts of the South Island on Tuesday.
3:25pm - Nelson Mayor Rachel Reese said the recovery will take years.
"You could see how full roads have been scoured out, you could see the damage from the intensity of rain," Reese said. "The degree of increase in the flow of the Maitai River was something I have never seen before and it really did build very, very quickly."
"The velocity of water that has moved through some of these spaces is just incredible."
3:10pm - Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty has announced a $200,000 contribution to the mayoral relief fund across the Nelson-Tasman region to provide welfare assistance straightaway.
He said 308 houses have had to be evacuated, 10 of which were because of a landslide. McAnulty said 104 houses have been assessed today and of those roughly 20 percent have been yellow or red stickered.
"It is clear there is going to be a long-term impact to the residents of this city and this area."
2:55pm - Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty is about to provide updates from flood-stricken Nelson regarding the wild weather hitting New Zealand.
2:50pm - The wild weather has also moved north with heavy rain pummelling Auckland.
Photos sent to Newshub show Tāmaki Drive getting hammered by huge swells.
Auckland remains under an orange heavy rain warning until Friday with a further 60 to 90 mm of rain expected to accumulate on top of what has already fallen.
2:40pm - The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) is providing support in the Westport, Greymouth and the Nelson-Tasman areas following the severe weather in the South Island.
The New Zealand Army currently has 14 personnel from Burnham Military Camp deployed to the West Coast to assist local authorities in Westport and Greymouth.
The Royal New Zealand Air Force has deployed 25 personnel from Base Woodbourne to assist the Nelson Tasman.
2:30pm - The media stand-up has been delayed to 3pm.
2:15pm - Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty is about to provide updates from flood-stricken Nelson regarding the wild weather hitting New Zealand.
McAnulty is also likely to face questions about bullying allegations by rogue Labour MP Gaurav Sharma.
1:50pm - The below images supplied by the NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi show the extent of the flooding across the top of the South Island.
1:36pm - ASB bank says it will support customers affected by the extreme weather events impacting Nelson, Tasman and the West Coast region by offering packages including suspension of home loan repayments and emergency overdraft facilities for personal, business and rural customers.
"We know the situation throughout the country is likely to get worse before it gets better and there will be a lot of concerned customers out there," ASB South Island regional manager Martin Gay says. "ASB is here to help with our teams on standby to talk through our range of relief options to best suit our customers when they're ready.
"Those affected by flooding and other weather damage may have a long road ahead and we hope these measures will help to alleviate some pressure so they can focus on more immediate tasks at hand."
1:30pm - Civil Defence Northland is urging residents to prepare for worsening conditions.
"At this time the key message is to take care on the roads and avoid any unnecessary travel - there are a number of closures and delays, and we are likely to see more as the rain continues," the agency says.
1:15pm - As has been reported, the wild weather system is now moving north.
Rain is pummelling Auckland and Northland causing flooding, slips and closures on State Highway 1 in multiple locations.
Auckland remains under an orange heavy rain warning, with up to 140mm expected to fall by Friday.
A strong wind watch is also in place, which could promp the closure of Auckland's Harbour Bridge.
MetService is warning of rapidly rising rivers and asking motorists to avoid unnecessary travel.
1pm - Earlier, Buller District Mayor Jamie Cleine told reporters the weather experienced in the region overnight wasn't as severe as anticipated.
"Right across the district, I believe we've got away relatively unscathed," he says.
12:40pm - In its latest update, West Coast Emergency Management Group says rainfall is easing in the region and river levels are dropping.
"Emergency operation centres across the region and the emergency coordination centre will continue to be staffed," group controller Te Aroha Cook says.
"With saturated soils and some full rivers, we need to keep a close eye on what this next weather system may bring.
"While we have some crews moving north, we also have capacity here to respond should we need to over the coming day."
12:15pm - MetService is also warning of strong northwest winds in exposed areas - which could become gale-force.
12:03pm - Below is the latest update from MetService:
A large atmospheric river of warm moist air from the tropics continues to bring extreme amounts of rain to parts of New Zealand today and into the weekend.
Although the rain is expected to ease across the upper South Island tonight, another pulse of heavy rain is expected across the area during the second half of Friday and Saturday morning.
As of 10am Thursday morning, over 600mm of rain had fallen in the Tasman Mountains and over 400mm in some lower lying areas in Tasman and Nelson regions since midnight Monday, and more heavy rain is expected in the next few days. Another 150 to 200mm is expected in the ranges east of Nelson before 11pm tonight, then again in the 24 hours from midday Friday to midday Saturday.
Heavy rain has also brought flooding to the Far North with over 100mm recorded at Kerikeri in Northland in the 12 hours up to 10am Thursday.
Later on Saturday, rain around the country weakens and we are left with more sporadic areas of wet weather, which will be less severe nationwide.
11:43pm - The Miles Toyota secondary schools' rugby championship final between Nelson College and Christchurch's St Bede's College has been postponed due to the wild weather.
It was originally scheduled to be played on Saturday at Nelson's Trafalgar Park but the match will now take place on August 27, Canterbury Rugby confirmed on Thursday.
11:27pm - In its updated severe weather warnings, MetService says Westland, Nelson and Buller remain under red heavy rain alerts.
Most of the North Island are also under heavy rain warnings and watches.
11:08am - A widespread power outage in Auckland's Wairau Valley has sparked multiple traffic light failures in the area.
"Please follow give-way rules, take extra care and be mindful of pedestrians crossing," Auckland Transport says.
Auckland power authority Vector says it's en route to investigate the outages.
10:57am - Pictured below is damaged caused by flooding in Nelson's Devenish Pl.
10:42am - Nelson City Council is reminding residents that drinking water remains safe to consume but people should avoid surface water due to potential contamination.
"The rain hasn't stopped and there is potential for more issues as a result," the council says. "That could mean more slips, flooding and evacuations.
"Nelson Tasman Civil Defence are monitoring the region, including all the rivers. They will let people know if they need to evacuate today, including going door to door."
10:24am - Some relief for the Buller District, with residents who were evacuated on Wednesday being advised they can return home on Thursday morning.
"We're mindful that there are strong winds and more rain in the forecast and another front is due to hit our district tomorrow, so this is a chance to take a breath and set ourselves up for what comes next," Buller Emergency Management says.
10:03am - Areas of the Far North are also becoming inundated, with images supplied to Newshub showing the Kaeo Bridge closed due to flooding.
9:53am - In the North Island, Auckland Airport has confirmed the cancellation of multiple regional flights on Thursday morning.
"You would need to ask the airline about why flights have been cancelled but our understanding it is due to weather around the country," a spokesperson says.
9:50am - Federated Farmers dairy chairman Wayne Langford told AM some farms in the Golden Bay area at the top of South Island had to evacuate their calves because of the wild weather.
"Yesterday we had about 350mm [of rainfall] on our farm, which is a fair bit for this time of year. Thankfully we got a fair bit of warning, so the cows and calves and everyone else had been moved to a safe place," Langford said.
"There's been a couple of farms that have had to evacuate their calves from the sheds and take them to higher ground but, all in all, I don't want to speak too soon, but the water has been relatively well behaved at the moment.
"It's definitely still coming down, it's around about 10 miles an hour at the moment, so we can handle that - it kind of comes and goes where it should... It's when it varies and picks up to 30 miles an hour that we start to get in a bit of trouble."
The wild weather in the area has seen some milk tanker pick-ups cancelled.
"We had our milk tanker cancelled last night, so we'll be feeding all that milk to the calves, which is a bonus for them, but there have been have been a few pickups out of had been cancelled in the area overnight," Langford told AM.
"They've done their best to get out and about this morning now that the waters have dropped back a little bit."
9:24am - Buller Civil Defence says its preparations are paying off, with bunds, pumps and sandbags helping to mitigate the impact of the severe weather on people and property.
About 160 households in Westport were encouraged to self-evacuate as a precaution on Wednesday afternoon as modelling showed their properties could be flooded overnight, Buller Civil Defence said in a statement.
"Most made their own arrangements to stay with family or friends, with four people placed in local motels and another spending the night in an evacuation centre," the statement said.
"River levels are currently dropping around the district. Much of the surface water that was building up overnight has drained away and all local roads and state highways are reported to be open."
Controller Al Lawn said the lull in the weather is providing some breathing space to assess the effectiveness of the measures in place.
"It's tempting to think that it's all over but there is a second weather front due to affect Buller District tomorrow night and into Saturday, so we won't be dismantling all our protective measures yet," Lawn said.
Checks on critical infrastructure are underway and another 5000 sandbags are arriving in Westport, Buller Civil Defence said.
Rainfall over the district varied hugely on Wednesday, with one rain gauge recording under 70mm and another 20km away recording about 300mm.
"If we get more of that sort of intense rain in the wrong places at the weekend it has the potential to cause issues, so we aren't relaxing," Lawn said.
The West Coast remains under a state of emergency and a red weather warning is still in place.
9:05am - For the second consecutive night, Auckland and Whangārei have experienced their warmest August night on record.
NIWA said Auckland experienced a minimum temperature of 15.6C, while Whangārei saw temperatures drop to 16.2C to break Wednesday's record.
You can read about Auckland's recording breaking Tuesday night here.
8:54am - Reporter Emma Olsen told AM the weather in Auckland is not great, with the city getting an "absolutely battering".
"MetService has updated its weather warnings for the upper North Island with a heavy rain warning for Northland, Auckland and the Great Barrier Island. Locals are told to prepare for 110-140mm of rain until tomorrow and wind gusts of up to 90kmph," Olsen told AM.
"There are some road closures on State Highway 1 in Hikarungi which is north of Whangārei because of a fallen tree. On State Highway 1 in Mangamuka Gorge there has been a slip that has caused trees to fall and blocked one lane of the road," she said.
"There are also Auckland ferry service cancellations with some taxis replacing ferries. We do have bus route diversions ... and we also have trains delayed because there was a wind gust that took a fence over a train track.
"So people across the country are advised to keep an eye on updates on weather and transport and to prepare for possible self-evacuations if necessary."
8:24am - Waka Kotahi is urging drivers in the Far North to delay their journey with State Highway 1 at the Rangiahua Bridge closed because of flooding.
8:13am - Nelson Mayor Rachel Reese says another 10 people have been evacuated after a failure on the Tahunaui hills overnight.
"It's been a busy last 24 hours, we've got about just over 230 people evacuated now and in fact, when I say 233, I'm talking households, not people, so let's let's double that, which would be a good estimate at the moment," she told AM.
Reese is urging residents who have been evacuated to stay out of their homes until they are provided with further information.
"People are out of those homes at the moment and they need to stay out of them this morning until we can get the USAR and Fire and Emergency teams in to do triage to see what the damage is like," she told AM.
"We are also dealing with a lot of wastewater overflow, so everyone should treat water as contaminated at the moment.
"There will be a bit of time to get underway, do that triage and we'll get information back to people as quickly as we can about whether they can come back into their homes."
Reese says the Nelson community has dealt with the evacuations really well.
"We have had no immediate rescues in the sense of people being absolutely stranded. The people of Nelson were proactive yesterday, they self-evacuated as soon as they got the warning that they needed to go and most people are staying with friends and family," she said.
"We've set up a welfare facility for people that didn't have somewhere to go and that most people actually were looked after. So thank you Nelson for doing what I know you always do."
State Highway 6 in Nelson is closed between Haven Road and Whakatu Drive Intersections because of a slip.
"We've got roads out, we've got slips and we've got the State Highway closed around Rocks Road, which means we've only got one route into the city. That is somewhat compromised at the moment because we've got a major road what's going on on our arterial roads," she said.
"So the message today, is if you can work from home, please do that. Several of the schools are closed and we really want people to stay off the road. If you have to travel, make sure that you take water, food and warm clothes because there will be delays."
8:07am - Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency has provided an update on the South Island highways affected by the weather.
Here is the full statement:
While rain has continued to fall on the West Coast and upper South Island overnight, there have been no further closures to the region’s state highways. West Coast routes remain open, and the most significant network issues are centred on Nelson, Marlborough, and Takaka.
State Highway 63 Renwick has reopened between Alma and Anglesea Streets after being closed by flooding yesterday and overnight.
State Highway Closures:
- SH60 Takaka. Closed between Haldane Road and Pupu Valley Road intersection.
- No detour is available.
- SH6 Nelson, Rocks Road. Closed due to the risk of a significant slip. It is likely to be closed until midday Friday and possibly longer.
- The detour route is via Haven Rd, Halifax St, Rutherford St and Waimea Rd. This route is available for Heavy Commercial Vehicles (HCV) - noting there are no other alternative routes through the city due to height and weight restrictions. All vehicles must comply with speed restrictions.
- SH6 Marlborough. Flooding. Closed from Hira to Havelock.
- Detour available via SH63, Saint Arnaud.
Slips and localised flooding are an ongoing risk across the region, with SH60 in Takaka and Riwaka/Motueka affected.
Waka Kotahi is monitoring conditions and will reassess the status of state highways depending on how the weather develops. If the weather eases and river levels fall, roads may be able to be reopened. However, the Metservice is forecasting more bad weather for the central South Island on Saturday. It will bring further heavy rain to areas that have already had significant rainfall.
People in affected areas are asked not to travel if they don’t have to. If you do have to use the roads, check their status with Waka Kotahi and local councils before you go. With more rain forecast, roads may be closed at short notice.
People should also stay up to date on the latest weather information.
7:56am - The weather is continuing to cause disruptions to public transport in Auckland with delays expected on the Eastern and Southern Line.
7:38am - The Buller District Mayor says rain has currently eased in the area after another night of heavy rainfall.
"We certainly had a lot of heavy rain heading into the evening last night, so some surface flooding around Westport and it certainly looks like the Mokihinui River may have been the biggest concern overnight," Jamie Cleine told AM.
"I've not had an update this morning, but certainly the rain has stopped at the moment and we're having a little bit of a breather."
Cleine told AM they're keeping a close eye on the rivers in the region with the red heavy rain warning still in place until 9pm on Thursday.
"It looks potentially like the Buller River has quite a lot of headroom, but noting of course, we are still in the red warning and there's this unpredictable rain ahead," he told AM.
"There's certainly a lot of pre-loading going into all the rivers, so we'll be keeping a watching brief as we get updated during the morning."
Cleine said the region has done all it can to prepare for the wild weather.
"Everyone is well aware, and certainly the team of Fire and Emergency and police went out doorknocking yesterday for about 160 households that are in the most vulnerable areas around Westport," he said.
"The military went out to the areas in Northern Buller and made sure they were prepared and had their evacuation plans all in hand. We're certainly ready, the advice yesterday was the Buller River peak was likely to be mid-morning through to early afternoon today, so it'll be updated this morning, but my feeling is we may have had a fair wallop of that rain sort of late last thing last night."
7:15am - Auckland Transport is advising commuters several ferry and bus services have been cancelled because of the weather.
7am - The wild weather has forced several key roads to close because of slips and flooding.
State Highway 6, the main road between Nelson and Blenheim is closed, due to flooding and slips. State Highway 60 is also closed in parts near Takaka while State Highway 63 near Marlborough Airport is closed.
A red heavy rain warning remains in place for Buller, Westland and the Nelson region with MetService warning these places could see 300mm of rain.
An orange heavy rain warning remains in place for the Tasman District west of Motueka and the Marlborough Sounds.
North Island
The North Island doesn't escape the bad weather with weather warnings and watches in place throughout the island.
An orange heavy rain warning is in place for Northland, Auckland, Great Barrier Island, Bay of Plenty, Waikato south of Raglan, Waitomo, Taumarunui, North Taranaki, Tongariro National Park, The Tararua Range and Mount Taranaki.
MetService warns that heavy rain in these areas could cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly, surface flooding and slips possible and driving conditions may be hazardous.
A strong wind warning is in place for Northland until Thursday night with MetService warning gusts could damage trees, powerlines and unsecured structures. Driving may be hazardous, especially for high-sided vehicles and motorcycles.
Waka Kotahi is urging drivers near the Mangamuka Gorge to delay their trip after slips and fallen trees blocked one lane on State Highway 1.
