About 100 homes and businesses are still without power as the Far North recovers from a weekend of heavy rain and wind gusts reaching up to 140km an hour.
More than 18,000 people were left without electricity and firefighters were inundated with calls about fallen trees and lifted roofs after
the storm hit on Friday night from Northland to Waikato.
Trees brought down power lines in the Coromandel and fell on to roads in the Far North, Whangarei, Rodney, North Shore, Coromandel and Waikato districts, said the Fire Service.
In all, firefighters responded to more than 100 weather-related calls, including roofs lifted from homes in Kerikeri, Mangawhai, Snells Beach and on Waiheke Island and a carport entangled in power lines in Whangaripo, near Matakana.
Top Energy general manager of networks Keith Gilby described the weather conditions as "appalling".
He said at the height of the poor weather, 12,000 homes and businesses were without power.
Mr Gilby said the last 100 or so should be restored by lunchtime.
Vector spokeswoman Philippa White said at the peak of the weekend's weather there were about 5000 homes and business without power but most of them had been restored.
Ms White said there may be some pockets still without power and she encouraged those people to get in touch with Vector.
All homes and businesses covered by North Power have been restored, apart from six customers.
North Power network general manager Ritchie Dempster said six customers were without power because of their private network and the company was helping them get back on the grid.
Phone lines were also cut during the storm and "wire snaps" at 175 Northland homes could take several days to repair, a Telecom spokesman said.
MetService spokesman Bob McDavitt said Auckland City was protected from the gale-force winds by a dense layer of protective air downwind of the Coromandel.
The air barrier pushed southeasterly gales over the top of the city, grazing the tip of the Sky Tower but leaving city-dwellers unruffled, he said.
Road closed
The weather has also caused problems on the roads with part of State Highway 10 in the Far North collapsing under the weight of a major landslide.
Police were alerted to the slip when a truck nearly rolled off the road about 6am today, Senior Sergeant Shane Mulcahy of northern police communications told NZPA.
The highway was now closed and roading authorities were making their way to the scene.
Further South, the Desert Rd has been closed due to snow and ice and some of the South Island passes were also due for a light dusting of snow.
Showers and wind gusts easing
MetService forecaster Chris Noble said the low that brought the wind and rain was now sitting off the East Cape and conditions were generally easing.
The Gisborne Ranges - which have had 100ml of rain since Saturday - were also getting some respite.
Mr Noble said the Ranges would get a further 20 to 30mls and a rain warning for the area would be downgraded.
He said the cold conditions in the Central North Island and the South Island would remain but there should not be much more snow.
Mr Noble said another low was approaching the North Island and could arrive on Friday. However, he said it was still too early to tell if it would bring severe weather.
Fifteen-year-old Danielle Anne Finlayson of Whakapara, 23km north-west of Whangarei, was killed just before 1am yesterday after a tree fell on the caravan she was sleeping in with two friends.
The area around her tiny community near Whangarei was among the worst hit by the weekend's dangerous weather. Mr McDavitt said 112mm of rain fell around Whangarei and winds reached 140km/h.
Flood-prone Northland communities may have been lucky to escape a repeat of the devastating floods in 2007, which cost $60 million in insurance claims.
Close to a month's rain fell in 36 hours on hills above Kaeo, or up to 170mm of rain, compared with the usual total of 250mm for all of July.
"If rainfall rates had been just 5mm to 10mm an hour more at the storm's height we would have seen widespread flooding," said Northland Regional Council water resources and hydrology programme manager Dale Hansen.
Heavy rain, swollen rivers, strong winds and large waves had combined to raise already high tides by another metre, flooding the lower river flats near Kaeo but not the town, he said.
Meanwhile, a father and his two children were found safe and well yesterday after going missing just before the poor weather while on a day hike in Northland's Mangamuka Ranges.
- With NZPA
Homes still without power after storm
The red areas on this satellite image show the frontal system breaking up yesterday afternoon.
About 100 homes and businesses are still without power as the Far North recovers from a weekend of heavy rain and wind gusts reaching up to 140km an hour.
More than 18,000 people were left without electricity and firefighters were inundated with calls about fallen trees and lifted roofs after
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