As the cyclone cleanup begins, affected residents are condemning the lack of official visibility and direction from local and national governments.
It's hard to comprehend the damage Cyclone Gabrielle inflicted on Esk Valley.
Residents are in a state of shock as they try to process what has happened to them and many feel forgotten in the official response.
"Everyone is standing around saying what do we do? Where do we start?" said Graeme Smith, whose home was severely damaged during the cyclone.
While both neighbours and strangers are pitching in with the cleanup, locals have seen little to no presence from officials.
"All we need is some direction and a plan. We need a plan first," said Smith.
While Grant Robertson has now been appointed Cyclone Recovery Minister, the fear from residents is this will merely result in committees and meetings.
"We need someone who can say, let's just do this," Smith said.
Anger and frustration is building as people feel they've been left alone without a strong official response.
The situation is similar in Puketapu, where residents are finding the damage incomprehensible and the lack of direction confusing.
"My mind can’t actually process what we’re seeing," said David Wesley, who nearly died on his roof during the cyclone and is now faced with a mammoth cleanup of his home and property.
"The forestry industry has to be held accountable," said Wesley, "Not for Cyclone Gabrielle, but for the consequences. They should be held responsible for the clean up."
Wesley also wants more of a presence from the Government in disaster-stricken Puketapu.
"It’s a national catastrophe and the Government should say so and come and visit, talk to people on the ground."
Will recovery is looking like such an insurmountable task, Wesley admits there's a likelihood he'll simply relocate.
The toll on mental health throughout the impacted regions is also high.
"I'm a tough rugby player but I've been crying every day because these people don't deserve it," Puketapu resident Ian Cadwallader said
"They don't deserve no communication. They want reassurance that somebody's going to work something out but we have seen nobody, no officials, nobody."
The lack of official direction has been recognised by Stuart Nash who was recently appointed head of cyclone recovery for Hawke's Bay.
"What we need to do is show them that we're getting things done," he told Newshub Nation.
When asked what he was getting done, he replied, "One thing I did do was I put my suit on on Monday, went down to Cabinet, and pushed really, really hard for what we need as a regional response in Hawke's Bay."
Nash intends to get his new agency running on Monday, which would be day 13 after the cyclone.
Watch the full video for more.
Watch Newshub Nation 9:30am Saturday/10am Sunday on Three & Three Now, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air.
