Pam fails to pack predicted punch

Cyclone Pam was not as bad as expected for the Hawke's Bay.

The wind roared, the rain poured and the lights went out for some in Hawke's Bay.

While the downgraded Cyclone Pam failed to pack the punch predicted, it still proved a nuisance.

Work stopped when the Port of Napier closed and further north school work was shelved as Te Mahia and Nuhaka schools closed for the day.

Homes lost power in Esk Valley yesterday, leaving about 150 people in the dark.

Unison Networks' spokesman Danny Gough said most of the cuts were caused by trees and debris on power lines as a result of heavy rain.

Crews were working hard to resolve the faults and restore power as quickly as possible, he said.

"Whilst the weather hasn't been as severe as was predicted, this could change at any time."

Four extra fire crews arrived from Wellington yesterday to boost numbers as some local crews had been sent to northern Hawke's Bay.

Hastings Fire Service Senior Station Officer Mike Manning's main concern last night was a high tide occurring at 3am this morning, which was expected to generate swells of up to 8m at Haumoana.

Speaking yesterday afternoon, he said it had been a largely incident-free day for the fire service.

"It's been business as usual really."

Aaron Wilkinson, weather analyst for Weather Watch, said it was lucky Cyclone Pam had not been closer to shore. "If it had been 50-100km closer towards the North Island, which in weather terms is nothing, Cyclone Pam may have caused a hell of a lot damage.

"We just have to say thank god it wasn't as bad as it could have been."

Hawke's Bay Civil Defence Emergency Management Group manager Ian Macdonald said there would be staff in Haumoana and Te Awanga at high tide early this morning as a precaution, due to the expected heavy swells.

He said the region's rivers were "coping well" and it appeared Hawke's Bay had escaped the severe weather.

Tomorrow was expected to be mainly fine with southwesterlies, with similar conditions on Thursday, MetService said.

Friday would be fine, with maximum temperatures hovering around 20C.