Fears for workers after Pam passes

Onlookers gather to watch the large waves pound the Bay coastline. Photo / George Novak

Swells of 9m hammered the Bay coastline yesterday as Cyclone Pam passed by the east coast.

Before high tide at 4pm yesterday surf was already breaking over the Mauao base track and on to Leisure Island forcing closures.

Waves break over the Mauao base track. Photo / Glenn Bradley

The track reopened just after 6pm last night.

Massive swells and strong rips lured crowds who watched and took photos from the grass above Main Beach.

Civil Defence said swells of 9m were recorded off the coast of Tauranga. The swells peaked at 2pm at 9m and averaged 4-5m.

Waves were reaching the sand dunes and moving heavy logs and debris before high tide. Mount Maunganui Lifeguard Service senior lifeguard Ken Jarman said the last time the surf had been so big was during Cyclone Ivy in 2004 and before that, Cyclone Bola in 1988.

A surfer took on the big waves at Tay St Beach after the swell dropped in the afternoon. Photo / George Novak

Local surfer Paul Carter agreed.

"It's extremely rare to have a North swell of this size on the north eastern coastline of New Zealand, only Bola and Ivy have produced waves of this magnitude," he told the Bay of Plenty Times.

The surf was expected to have dropped down to 3m by today.

MetService meteorologist Georgina Griffiths said the biggest impact Cyclone Pam produced in the Western Bay of Plenty was along the coast.

"Damaging seas of 5m [to] 8m have been observed for open waters of Northland and Auckland this morning, and these heavy swells are forecast on to the open coastline of the Bay of Plenty," she said yesterday.

Tauranga Airport recorded 15mm of rain from about 6pm on Sunday.

The cyclone was re-classified as an intense extra tropical cyclone at 1.15am Monday morning and tracked off the East Cape of the North Island overnight.

The brunt of Cyclone Pam missed the Western Bay of Plenty with only 45km/h wind gusts recorded in the 24-hour period to yesterday evening.

Mr Barrow said there could be a slight chance of rain today but would be mainly fine.

Kiwifruit growers were grateful the weather was better than predicted but the welfare of hundreds of Vanuatu seasonal kiwifruit workers who were set to arrive in the Bay this week was still unknown after Cyclone Pam left the islands devastated.

Two-hundred and sixty workers were scheduled begin arriving tomorrow for the Te Puke EastPack packhouse but human resources general manager Heather Burton said she had still not heard from many of them.

The workers came every year as part of the Government's Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Work Policy and covered the night shift during kiwifruit picking and packing season.

"Our biggest concern is their welfare and their families," Ms Burton said.

The islanders relied on the kiwifruit work to support their families back in Vanuatu, she said.

Most of their homes were destroyed or damaged and she thought they would be in a "very difficult" situation deciding whether they needed to stay with their families or come to New Zealand to earn money.

"At this stage we have no idea how many will still come over and how many will decide they need to stay with their families.

"We only know what we've seen on the news ... We know it's pretty much devastated there."

Tauranga residents holidaying in Vanuatu were "safe but a little fragile", House of Travel Tauranga and Mount Maunganui owner and operator Shane Kennedy said.

"We will need to consider future travel plans for many customers depending on how this evolves, what services may be compromised over the next few days and weeks," he said.