A man cleaning up an area where his two sheds were until hit by a tornado on Goldsmith Crescent in Levin. Photo / Mark Mitchell
A man cleaning up an area where his two sheds were until hit by a tornado on Goldsmith Crescent in Levin. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Levin residents had a rude awakening this morning when a tornado scorched through the Horowhenua town, causing widespread damage and causing major disruption.
Levin man Tyson Sager says he was stunned to see his neighbour's station wagon fly backwards past his home as a tornado roared down hisstreet.
The Kinross St resident said he was woken early this morning by incredibly strong winds that kept ramping up.
"I woke up, jumped out of bed and looked out the window and I saw my mate's car flying backwards down the road.
"It was a red station wagon and it was just flying down the road and the wind was blowing it like nothing.
A man cleaning up an area where his two sheds were until hit by a tornado on Goldsmith Crescent in Levin. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Sager said the tornado brought down trees and powerlines, cutting power and leaving the entire suburb in pitch darkness.
"All you could hear was people screaming," he said, describing the aftermath of the frenzied weather.
He said daybreak revealed streets in the area with extensive damage including roofs stripped of tiles, fences destroyed and trees down everywhere.
As dawn broke, the scale of the damage became clear. Photo / Rei Natz Sy
"We've got an old man a few houses down and he's just bought a new flash caravan. Well, that got tipped. He's really gutted because that was like a $30,000 caravan that's just been destroyed."
Labour's Ōtaki MP Terisa Ngobi went live on Facebook sharing the scene outside her Levin office, where a large tree came down and blocked the road. She urged residents to stay home and advised anyone thinking of coming to or through the town to stay away.
She also shared photos of the damage, revealing the rear of the electorate office had been ripped away by the wind.
Damage to the rear of MP Terisa Ngobi's electorate office in Levin. Photo / Terisa Ngobi
A large tree fell outside MP Terisa Ngobi's electorate office in Levin. Photo / Terisa Ngobi
"The back wall of our office has completely disappeared and trees are down in the main street," Nogbi said.
The region was also hit with heavy hail, with Ōhau residents sharing photos and videos of large hailstones piled on roads and residences.
Locals rushed online to share photos and video and to check on neighbours, saying "Mother Nature is out in force" and that the noise of the hail had scared them.
Ohau had a wild start to the day when a large hailstorm hit. Photo / Stacey Duggan
The hail in Ohau lay thick on the ground this morning. Photo / Michelle Fox Cooper
Horowhenua District Mayor Bernie Wanden is advising Levin locals to "hunker down" as the area continues to experience severe thunderstorms.
The tornado comes as Mother Nature is set to unleash a full smorgasbord of weather on New Zealand today with snow, gales and rain forecast for many parts of the country.
⚡ 4297+ lightning strikes around New Zealand & the Tasman Sea since 12am Friday...
Thunderstorms are moving into the western North Island this morning, signalling the arrival of a cooler, unstable air mass. pic.twitter.com/s8sKx4Dih4
Snow is forecast to fall across most of the South Island as well as parts of the lower and central North Island today and over the weekend.
While temperatures in the upper North Island will stay relatively warm, gale warnings have been issued for Auckland's Hauraki Gulf, Manukau Harbour, Coromandel, Bay of Plenty and Bream Head in Northland to Cape Colville.
It follows a spectacular lightning show over central New Zealand last night and the stormy conditions are set to continue this morning for the capital.
⛈🌩⚡ WOW! ⛈🌩⚡
That is a SERIOUS lightning display which just passed through the #KapitiCoast ! The show is over, for now, as heavy rain moves towards Manawatu.
