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16-02-2026
WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s weather forecaster on Sunday warned more flooding could hit the country’s North Island, a day after floods caused power outages, road collapses; home evacuations and was linked to the death of a man whose vehicle was submerged on a highway.
There was “threat to life from dangerous river conditions, significant flooding and slips” as a deepening low-pressure system east of the North Island brought heavy rain and severe gales to several regions, the weather bureau said.
The worst weather was forecast to hit late on Sunday, followed by a slow easing of conditions on Monday, it said on its website, after heavy rain began battering large swaths of the country on Friday, sparking the floods.
Authorities on Sunday had a state of emergency in place for the districts of Waipa and Otorohanga, an agricultural region home to about 10,000 people that is 180 km (112 miles) south of the country’s most populous city, Auckland.
The Otorohanga District Council said on Facebook that geotechnical teams “spent the night assessing slips and checking the structural stability of roads” in the area. Some 4,291 properties remained without power on the North Island, Energy Company Powerco said on its website.
On Saturday, a man apparently died in his car in floodwaters, authorities said, adding that about 80 people were evacuated to an emergency centre. Images shared on social media showed vast semirural neighborhoods submerged and collapsed sections of road where floodwaters had receded.
Six people were killed in January after heavy rains triggered a landslide at Mount Maunganui on the North Island’s east coast, bringing down soil and rubble on a site crowded with families on summer holidays.
Last month, New Zealand police restarted recovery efforts for the victims of a landslide that hit a busy campground on the country’s North Island last week.
Six people, including two teenagers, are presumed dead after heavy rains triggered Thursday’s landslide at Mount Maunganui on the island’s east coast, bringing down soil and rubble at the site in the city of Tauranga, crowded with families on summer holidays. Human remains were found at the site on Saturday, but police have yet to confirm if they had been identified.
On Sunday, efforts to recover the victims were suspended after a contractor driver noticed potential instability on the face of the landslide.
Bay of Plenty District Commander Tim Anderson said in a statement on Monday that the recovery effort resumed at 10:30 a.m. local time (2130 GMT on Sunday).
“Additional monitoring equipment has been brought in and specialist crews removed loose material that was of concern above the slip area this morning,” Anderson said.
A vigil was held for the victims at a nearby park on Sunday, which was attended by around 200 locals as well as Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell, according to Radio New Zealand.
Luxon said in a post on social media that it had been “very special to join the Mt Maunganui community” to remember the precious lives lost.
Two teenagers were among six people missing after a landslide hit a busy campground on New Zealand’s North Island, authorities said on Friday, as rescuers worked round the clock to locate survivors under the rubble.
Heavy rains triggered Thursday’s landslide at Mount Maunganui on the island’s east coast, bringing down soil and rubble at the site in the city of Tauranga, crowded by families on summer holidays, but no deaths have been confirmed.
“We have 25 personnel working with contractors and their diggers and police dogs, as well as police operations to ensure that every inch of soil removed is worked through,” said David Guard, a fire and emergency official. (Int’l News Desk)
