Drivers heeded official advice and kept away from Wellington highways today after torrential rain closed main routes with flooding.
Family grieve for elderly doctor who drowned in Wellington floods while driving to a lunch.
Firefighters and police were responding to reports of surface flooding in and around Levin last night, just a day after a disastrous deluge in Wellington.
The Fire Service sent trucks to Okarito and Beechwood Aves in the Horowhenua town last night.
"Levin might be a tad busy tonight," a FireService central communications spokeswoman said.
"People are saying their properties are flooded but when we get there it's not actually in the house, so there's not much we can do - but if they call back to say, 'Yes, it is in the house', then we'll go and have a look," she added.
Police said diversions were in place, with southbound traffic redirected through the Shannon-Foxton Road onto SH1.
Northbound traffic was diverted at the intersection of SH1 and Queen on to SH1.
A few slips were reported in the Manawatu Gorge but no incidents as serious as those in the Wellington region's floods on Thursday.
MetService issued a severe weather watch for Kapiti and Horowhenua today.
The forecasters expected rain, including some brief heavy bursts, to keep falling until early tomorrow morning.
"Although accumulations look likely to be short of warning criteria, a Watch will be maintained for the time being, as any rain in these areas could be significant," MetService added.
A severe weather warning was in place last night as a burst of heavy rain was forecast for the Tararua District and Hawkes Bay south of Waipukurau.
As the family of Wellington flooding victim Paul Hill was in mourning and the capital started cleaning up, tornadoes and high winds continued to lash the Bay of Plenty yesterday.
80-year-old Dr Paul Hill from Karori died in flood waters in Bracken Street, near Sladdon Park. Photo / Supplied
Dr Hill, a Karori grandfather, died after he was trapped in Thursday's floodwaters when driving to a family lunch.
His family said they would remember the 80-year-old as a smart, lively, much loved man.
"He was a climber, a traveller, had an active and inquiring mind and a life-long love of learning new things," his family said in a statement.
"He took great delight in walking the hills of Wellington with his beloved dog, enjoyed his membership of the Alpine Club, and shortly after his 80th birthday completed a solo tramp of the Kepler Track."
Dr Hill was born in India and raised in Ireland but thought of New Zealand as his home.
He was a doctor and physiologist who taught at the University of Auckland's medical school.
His car was found underwater in Bracken St, Petone, with the keys still in the ignition.
Michael Jenness, 21, who witnessed the incident that took Dr Hill's life, said: "You could only see the antenna and just the top of the roof."
Thursday's drenching was in some places the heaviest seen for more than 50 years, Greater Wellington Regional Council said.
The Porirua Stream recorded its largest flow since 1980.
Around the capital, businesses were cleaning up after surface flooding hit swathes of the Kapiti Coast, Hutt Valley and Tawa.
John McDonald, manager of Ullrich Aluminium in Korokoro near Petone, said the site was "badly hit" in Thursday's floods. Staff could not completely clean up yesterday because a thick layer of sludge blocked a warehouse entrance.
The Student Volunteer Army, famed for its exploits in post-quake Christchurch, also chipped in around the region.
But as Wellington cleaned up, the Bay of Plenty had a fresh blast of wild weather yesterday, with high winds flipping a plane on a runway and a mini-tornado striking a girls' college.
Tauranga Girls' College principal Pauline Cowens said strong winds lasting about five minutes pounded the school.
She said the school sail shades were damaged and table umbrellas and outdoor furniture scattered across the staff outdoor area.
I don't know if you would call it a tornado but it was enough to bend poles in the courtyard.
Mrs Cowens said students were told to stay indoors for 20 minutes before heading outside.
Earlier, a tornado ripped the roof of the local Baypark Stadium and other twisters tore off or damaged 15 roofs in Mt Maunganui on Thursday night.
Mercury drops as rain disappears
Temperatures are expected to drop this morning and early this afternoon as a big low-pressure system crosses the country and drags in cooler winds.
The largest cities should avoid deluges of the sort that hit Wellington on Thursday.
"Yes, it will feel cold compared to how mild it has been lately - but much of the air moving in this weekend will bring temperatures back to more normal levels," WeatherWatch forecaster Philip Duncan said.
MetService meteorologist Stephen Glassey said that while most of the rain should disappear as the weekend progressed, "people will also notice that things get a bit cooler".
