New Zealand Hit by Intense Storm, Air Travel Affected and Power Cuts Reported

New Zealand : On Monday, February 16, severe rain and strong winds caused road closures throughout parts of the North Island and knocked out electricity for tens of thousands of people. They also disrupted flights, trains, and ferries.

The airport reported that most flights into and out of Wellington, the nation’s capital, were either delayed or cancelled Monday morning. Media outlets said that Air New Zealand halted flights at Wellington, Napier, and Palmerston North airports.

Around 10,000 clients in Wellington were among the more than 30,000 homes without electricity, according to authorities. While emergency personnel address the extensive damage, many schools have been closed and drivers in the Wellington area have been urged to stay off the roads.

Ken Cooper, Assistant National Commander for Emergency New Zealand, stated:

“We had a very busy night, and our firefighters are still answering calls,” Assistant National Commander Ken Cooper of Emergency New Zealand stated. “The Wellington area accounted for over half of the 852 emergency calls that were received overnight,” he said. Earlier this month, raw sewage had to be released off the southern shore of Wellington after the main wastewater treatment plan collapsed during a storm. Some locals call the storm that occurred over the weekend a “poonami” on social media because it blew and washed pollution back onto the coast.

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Images posted online after the waves subsided revealed flooded semi-rural districts, residences that were drowned, and sections of roads that had collapsed. The New Zealand Herald quoted Marilyn Bulford, who lives in the isolated community of Bunnythorpe, around 160 kilometres (100 miles) north of Wellington, as saying the weather had been “absolutely terrifying.” “It’s very awful. Her words, “I haven’t seen anything like it,” “Everywhere there are fallen trees—on cars, fences, the road, and the golf course—it’s a total mess. “She went on, “I’ve never seen such massive trees blowing around.”

Strong gusts and a lot of rain have been pelting several places over the weekend due to a developing low-pressure system east of the North Island. A man was found dead in a submerged car by a road on Saturday, February 14. Authorities warn of more disruption as the storm is predicted to move into the South Island on Tuesday.