Storm leaves chaos in its wake

The fury of ex-cyclone Fehi has passed over New Zealand, leaving a trail of flooded homes, torn-up roads and more than 100 motorists facing a night in their cars.

The Westland District Council reported at least 115 people were stranded overnight in their cars near Fox Glacier.

"They will receive assistance as a priority first thing in the morning as conditions allow," the council said.

"There is no immediate danger. They have water and shelter."

As some regions begin cleaning up the mess, forecasters are warning areas like the West Coast of the South Island are not off the hook quite yet.

MetService meteorologist Sarah Haddon said the main system affecting the South Island yesterday had moved away to the southwest.

However, Haddon said a low would stick around, continuing to drive nasty weather into the already soggy Westland area.

"The West Coast will continue to see heavy rainfall and strong winds," she said.

"They're not off the hook yet."

A heavy rain warning remained in place for Westland and the Canterbury High Country well into this morning.

Several regions hit hard by flooding remained on high alert last night as another high tide was imminent.

South of Auckland in the coastal community of Kaiaua, residents were warned to prepare for the possibility of flooding.

The small town was hit hard by flooding last month when a storm that coincided with a king tide caused waves to burst over the sea bank, affecting hundreds of homes.

A Radio New Zealand car is crushed by a fallen tree on Rocks Road in Nelson. Photo / Supplied

In Westport, a welfare centre set up for evacuees earlier in the day was open until 3am.

Dunedin Civil Defence was keeping an emergency line open for those with concerns about flooding.

With the low expected to settle in, today would bring a "significant drop" in temperatures over the country, Haddon said.

The South Island was worst hit by the storm yesterday, with Civil Defence declaring a State of Emergency in Dunedin and the Buller District.

The Dunedin City Council began evacuating residents late in the afternoon, when about 800 homes were at risk of being inundated with sewage-contaminated floodwater.

Police were visiting properties affected by wastewater overflows around South Dunedin to let people know that an evacuation centre was available if needed.

The rain presented a dramatic turn-around for Otago, where a huge blaze ripped through a chunk of forestry and incinerated several industrial buildings on Wednesday night.

About 100 residents were evacuated when the fire took hold of the suburb of Burnside.

The West Coast was also battered by torrential rain and strong gusts yesterday, cutting power to the area.

Some residents in Hokitika and the surrounding area were expected to be without power for at least another 24 hours.

Dozens of campers were forced to flee the grounds of the local racecourse in Westport yesterday morning after a "mini tsunami" of floodwater inundated the track.

Westport South, North and Buller high schools will also be closed today, following a directive from the Ministry of Education.

While Christchurch escaped the worst of the weather event, the area was hit with strong winds and rain. Thousands of homes were without power in the Selwyn and Halswell areas, though residents were expected to be back on the grid by last night.

Christchurch firefighters also battled several unrelated fires over the afternoon.

Wellingtonians battled fierce winds with gusts up to 160km/h and heavy rain yesterday afternoon.

Flights were cancelled, as were ferries and a handful of train services.

A backlog of stressed passengers could also be expected further north today, after a raft of flights scheduled from Auckland Airport were also cancelled yesterday.

Auckland was expected to get another dumping last night as the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Fehi continued to hammer the country.

MetService rain radar showed a huge rain cell tracking over the region.