A heavy rain warning is in place for the Bay of Plenty as an "atmospheric river" weather event hits the country.
Tarukenga Rd, near Rotorua, was closed last night due to three large gum trees falling across the road.
A Rotorua Lakes Council spokeswoman said contractors were working on clearing those today.
"Council staff and contractors are on standby to deal with anything that does occur and people are urged to take care on our roads," she said.
A slip has also been reported on State Highway 30 between Lake Rotoiti and Lake Rotoehu.
The Heavy Rain Warning for Bay of Plenty incl west of Edgecumbe remains. We can now expect a further 80 to 120 mm to accumulate on top of what has already fallen. If you plan to travel, drive carefully!
— BOP Civil Defence (@BOPCivilDefence) August 17, 2022
MetService has issued a heavy rain warning from 4am today to 3am Friday for the Bay of Plenty, west of Edgecumbe, where between 120 - 170 millimetres of rain was forecast.
Heavy rain may cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly. Surface flooding and slips are also possible.
A heavy rain watch is also in place for Bay of Plenty areas east of Edgecumbe, Taupō and the Coromandel Peninsula.
More than 200 homes have been evacuated and a state of emergency declared in Nelson as a severe "atmospheric river" rain and flooding event hits the South Island.
Not just the SI! This animation shows that many parts of the country are going to be affected by heavy rain in the next few days. Much of the NI now on Heavy Rain Watch or Warning. Check your region's forecast here https://t.co/qHyE5zzql5 pic.twitter.com/LSzfzbCmLQ
— MetService (@MetService) August 16, 2022
Atmospheric rivers are large and extremely high plumes of moisture that move in the atmosphere from the tropics to the mid-latitudes, where New Zealand is located.
University of Otago senior lecturer in geography Dr Daniel Kingston said although this specific weather event had not been analysed regarding the influence of climate change, it was "more than likely playing a role".
Average air temperature had warmed by slightly more than 1C over the past century, and as the atmosphere warmed it could hold more moisture, increasing the likelihood for extreme heavy-rainfall events such as this.
"Sea surface temperatures around New Zealand are also warmer than average right now, which can further amplify these sort of events."
Very latest from our high-resolution model.
— NIWA Weather (@NiwaWeather) August 16, 2022
Key messages for northern & western South Island:
🌧️ Heavy rain through tonight
🌧️ Rain eases for a time later tomorrow
🌧️ Heavy rain re-develops Fri & persists into Sat
🌧️ Rain, some heavy, tonight/tomorrow for NI pic.twitter.com/IylEUWSDf5
Kingston said this event could be more damaging because it comes on top of an already exceptionally wet winter.
This July was the wettest on record, while more than 40 locations have experienced record or near-record rainfall, he said.
"The ground is already very wet, with limited capacity to absorb further rain."