* Cyclone Gabrielle: Follow our live updates
The full extent of the destruction from Cyclone Gabrielle - from the east coast regions of Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne to Auckland’s west coast beach settlements of Muriwai and Piha - is starting to dawn.
Thousands of people are out of their homes, many remain “uncontactable” on a missing-person database, and new images reveal wrecked roads and bridges, properties, and infrastructure. Nearly 150,000 people were still without power across the North Island yesterday - and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council said this morning that Napier should expect to be without electricity for the next two weeks.
Gisborne police have confirmed they located a deceased individual in the region, who was believed to have died from floodwaters. This brought the death toll of Cyclone Gabrielle to five, but North Island locals fear this toll could rise further with recounts of “multiple bodies” spotted during the storm.
