One Gisborne resident has described the scene outside his house as "completely apocalyptic".
And inside their homes and businesses, residents have been left without power, phones or the internet.
Electricity has been restored to some properties but for many in Gisborne-Tairawhiti, it could be "days or weeks, rather than hours" before they're reconnected.
A region submerged and seemingly isolated from the rest country.
Residents in Gisborne-Tairawhiti woke up on Tuesday morning to scenes of complete chaos as river levels reached record highs, surpassing those set during Cyclone Bola in the late 80s.
"Judging by the damage I suspect I'm here for at least a week. I've never seen anything like it," Gisborne local Chris Williams said.
Like many, Williams' property has been completely cut off.
He still has no way of contacting emergency services or checking in on loved ones.
"My parents live right next to the beach and my sister lives in Sponge Bay which is also notorious for flooding so I've got no idea - and unless I get the kayak out in pretty dodgy-looking waters I've got no way of finding out," Williams said.
Roads are closed throughout the region.
A satellite phone was the only way to contact the region on Tuesday morning and with communication still very limited, officials said the true extent of the damage remains unknown.
"We don't know what we don't know and we felt we had some blind spots when it came to Tairawhiti," acting Civil Defence director Roger Ball said.
Leaving it to community leaders, like Lillian Te Hau Ward, in Tokomaru Bay to keep people informed.
"I understand they've got a lot of communication problems in Gisborne at the moment. But as long as we keep our lines of communication open with our communities, the anxiety levels lessen," Te Hau Ward told Newshub.
Locals are being urged to restrict water use and the council said food and fuel are at critical levels.
Emergency services have been swamped with callouts - even as the 111 network failed in the region.
"Helicopters are trying to rescue people but are being hampered by high winds. We have people trapped on roofs and we are still in the process of undertaking full awareness and restoring radio and cellular contact with our firefighters," FENZ's national deputy commander Steph Rotorungi told Newshub.
In Tokomaru Bay, 26 homes were evacuated on Monday night and that number is expected to double again tonight with more torrential rain on the way.
Gisborne Hospital is up and running on backup diesel generators. It is one of the few places in the area with internet and power.
But for most people, it's going to be a long time before life gets back to normal.
