Auckland braces for flooding as Cyclone Gabrielle batters New Zealand

Flights cancelled and residents told to stay home as city faces second deluge this year

Residents of Auckland braced for a deluge from Cyclone Gabrielle on Monday, two weeks after a record-breaking storm swamped New Zealand’s largest city and killed four people.

Much of Auckland ground to a halt as train services were cancelled, libraries and most schools closed, and authorities asked people to make only essential trips.

Air New Zealand cancelled all domestic flights to and from Auckland until Tuesday morning, as well as many international flights.

Although the storm was downgraded as it approached on Sunday, it had already toppled trees, damaged roads and downed power lines.

The cyclone, which was moving south, dumped more than 220mm of rain in areas north of Auckland, cutting power to about 58,000 households and forcing many roads to close.

About 46,000 homes remained without power on Monday afternoon.

Authorities declared a state of emergency in Northland, Auckland and some other regions, and were asking some residents in low-lying areas to evacuate.

“Things will get worse before they get better,” Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said in a press conference, urging people to “be prepared, stay inside if you can”.

He said the government had considered declaring a national state of emergency for only the third time in the country's history but it was not yet necessary.

The government announced an aid package of $7.25 million to help recovery efforts.

Gabrielle was expected to pass Auckland overnight. Its wind speed was downgraded as gusts abated to about 130kph.

“This is a widespread and significant weather event. Significant heavy rain and damaging winds are impacting many parts of northern and central New Zealand. In addition, large waves, storm surges and coastal inundation are affecting exposed eastern coasts of the North Island,” weather forecaster MetService said.

The storm hit Auckland two weeks ago after the wettest day ever recorded in the city of 1.6 million, with as much rain falling over 24 hours as would typically fall over an entire summer.

Quickly rising floodwaters and landslides killed four people, caused widespread disruption and left hundreds of homes unliveable.

Metservice meteorologist Georgina Griffiths said that given Auckland was already saturated, more landslides and flooding were expected.

With Mr Hipkins and some other lawmakers unable to immediately travel from Auckland to capital Wellington, some events scheduled for this year’s opening session of parliament were rescheduled. Mr Hipkins’ statement outlining his priorities for the year was moved from Tuesday to Wednesday.