Flooding on Sam Clarke's farm in Huakai. Photo: Supplied
Flooding in the Coromandel Peninsula eased overnight but several roads remain closed and farms are still under water.
The region took a battering yesterday, with floods cutting off the settlement of Hikuai near Pauanui and forcing stranded travellers to escape in a Surf Life Saving rescue boat.
MetService said the region got 410mm of rain in 24 hours.
Sections of State Highway 25 remain closed by slips and flooding.
The band of heavy rain is now moving towards Gisborne and Bay of Plenty, and weather warnings apply until 9pm.
Streams and rivers may rise and driving conditions may be hazardous due to slips and surface flooding.
There are also warnings for north of Tolaga Bay, especially around the ranges.
Civil defence controller Garry Towler said the region saw considerable rain and damage.
"Being a prolonged storm - it started raining on Tuesday - this one has dealt us quite a blow."
Eight roads are still closed - three on the state highway network, and five local roads.
"The eastern seaboard on the Coromandel, from Pauanui, Hikuai to Whitianga, is closed. It will probably be closed for a good few hours," he told Morning Report.
Tairua and Whangamatā also bore the brunt of the storm.
"There's a major slip on the Kopu Hikuai road - that's also closed at present. Pretty much 50 per cent of the Coromandel is inaccessible at the moment. Hopefully, the roads will start to clear by midday."
He said travellers to and from the Coromandel could still use the Thames Coast road, which was clear.
"But there are slips everywhere ... all the roads have got some slips, trees down.
"The worst of the weather has cleared."
Some Highways in the Coromandel area remain CLOSED, following bad weather yesterday. Please continue to drive to the conditions and watch out for surface flooding, slips and fallen trees. Closure info here: https://t.co/QjsXOEpezf. pic.twitter.com/7Mu5UerDje
— Waka Kotahi NZTA Waikato/BoP (@WakaKotahiWaiBP) July 16, 2020
The weather warning remained, but they were expecting some rain today.
"We still have a lot of wind, it is quite gusty."
There were several power outages yesterday, but he said they were repaired.
Towler knew of a farmer who had 250 acres under water this morning.
"It's quite considerable. That surface water will drain quickly with the tides, but hopefully, it won't do much pastoral damage.
"The farmers have certainly copped it this time around."
Sam Clarke's farm in Huakai is under water but he managed to shift the 220 dairy cows to higher ground yesterday.
"It is the biggest flood I've seen since I've been here. It was really ripping out."
He said there was good warning and they managed to get the stock to safety.
"There's been a few slips on the hills, the biggest worry is silt damage and fences from those big logs. It's going to be a bit of a mess."
At the moment, 50 per cent of the farm is underwater, but in the height of the flood it was about 70 per cent. He said in the deepest party the water was about three or four metres.
Further north
This morning north of Whangārei has also seen heavy rain and isolated thunderstorms. There is a severe thunderstorm watch in place.
MetService said there was a chance of surface flooding and driving conditions could become hazardous due to low visibility.
⚠Severe Thunderstorm Watch for Northland north of Whangārei is in place. There is a risk that heavy rain may become slow moving over localised places producing downpours. ❗ Severe Thunderstorm Warning remains in place. Details at https://t.co/GeH6tLLohf ^Tahlia pic.twitter.com/zLAsdrFsBT
— MetService (@MetService) July 16, 2020
Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued for Kerikeri area. Downpours have brought around 70mm to the airport in the last few hours, with more to come in the next two or three hours. https://t.co/iUZXxAHB40 ^TA pic.twitter.com/q5YY6KunJo
— MetService (@MetService) July 16, 2020
In the south
Motorists travelling near Cromwell can expect delays of up to 30 minutes due to a slip sitting above the main road into town.
State Highway 8 remains open to only one lane of traffic at Deadman's Point under stop-go traffic management as the Transport Agency continues to stabilise the slip.
The agency has not ruled out closing the road depending on the slip's behaviour and falling material.