Homes were being evacuated in Kaitaia and an unknown number of people and vehicles were trapped on State Highway 1 in the Mangamuka Ranges last night as torrential rain continued to batter the Far North.
The worst of yesterday's rain — almost 200mm in some areas in the 24 hours to 6pm — fell on the east coast between the Bay of Islands and Whangaroa, but by nightfall the pain was felt most in the Kaitaia area.
The top of the Far North was cut off from the rest of the country with SH1 blocked in no less than four places between Okaihau and Kaitaia by slips or flooding, and the alternative route via SH10 closed by floodwaters north of Kaeo.
Several families in low-lying Allen Bell Drive, Kaitaia, had left their homes earlier in the day but by evening emergency services were advising other residents there and on nearby Parkdale Cres to evacuate for the night.
Kaitaia fire chief Craig Rogers said about 20 homes were affected.
Civil Defence was planning to set up a relief centre where families could spend the night if necessary.
By 6pm yesterday the Awanui River was full to the brim but hadn't breached its banks.
"It hasn't got into any houses but it's knocking at the door. People have been told to be prepared to leave and, if they have somewhere they can go, to go now."
Only large trucks could still reach Kaitaia via SH1 or SH10. The brigade's four-wheel-drive fire engine had got through floodwaters across SH1 south of town, "but it was pretty deep". The other trouble spot on SH1 was at Rangiahua.
Rogers said Kaitaia had had deluges before but they typically lasted 24 hours.
By last night it had already been raining for 24 hours with potentially another 24 to go.
Across the district police and volunteer firefighters carried out a number of rescues from homes and cars.
One of the most dramatic occurred about 2pm on SH1 south of Kaitaia, near Larmer Rd, when an inflatable boat from Ahipara Surf Rescue was used to pluck a 75-year-old woman from a home surrounded by rising floodwaters.
About 6pm Kaitaia's fire brigade was called back to the same area to rescue the driver of a van swept off the highway into a flooded roadside drain near Fryer Rd.
Several rescues were also carried out SH10 north of Kāeo, which was passable for trucks and four-wheel-drives but, as a number of drivers discovered, not ordinary vehicles.
Far North District Council dispatched an ex-army Unimog truck to Kaitaia in case it was needed to help with evacuations or to reach people trapped by flooding.
In the Bay of Islands at least four vessels came to grief due to powerful onshore winds and torrential rain.
A 7m pleasure boat called Elmo wore through its mooring line at Russell's Matauwhi Bay and washed ashore on Paihia Beach opposite Kings Rd.
Despite strong winds, crashing surf and driving rain, a Coastguard rescue boat, crewed by Whangaruru and Bay of Islands volunteers, managed to get a line out to the stranded vessel and pull it off the beach to safety. It was not thought to have been seriously damaged.
Three other boats were not so fortunate.
Deputy harbour master Peter Thomas said a yacht which also wore through its anchor line was blown from Matauwhi Bay onto Te Wahapu Peninsula, while a classic yacht sank at Ōpua when its bilge pumps were unable to keep up with the ingress of rain.
A large catamaran had been blown on to rocks at Sullivans Beach, near Paihia, and was in a bad way. Conditions were, however, too rough to try salvaging it yesterday.
Falling trees also brought chaos throughout the day by blocking roads and dragging down power lines.
In many places locals took matters, and chainsaws, into their own hands, including on SH1 near Te Kao and SH10 south of Mangonui.
Motorists were thrown into the chaos when a truck overturned on SH1 at Saleyards Rd, north of Whangārei just before 1pm, losing its load.
Some of the worst power outages were in Ōpua, Peria, Towai and Fairburn.
At 4pm more than 1000 Far North households were still without power but by 6pm that had been reduced to just over 700.
Also as of 4pm, eight local roads remained closed around the Far North with another 15 restricted but passable. Kohumaru Rd, south of Mangōnui, was likely to stay closed for some time due to a slip.
A large slip also disrupted traffic at Lemons Hill, on SH11 between Kawakawa and Ōpua.
Flooded roads and cancelled buses forced many schools to close, in particular in Whangaroa, Hokianga and Doubtless Bay.
The wettest place in the Far North was Kerikeri with a whopping 192mm in the 24 hours to 6pm yesterday.
Ngunguru at Dugmores Rock was doused by the most rain in the Whangārei District with 147.5mm for the same 24 hour period.
Kaipara proved to be the driest place in the region for that time with most rainfall tallies sitting under 30mm.
MetService predicted downpours to ease around 9am today and strong wind gusts up to 120km/h were expected to die down overnight.