New Zealand declares emergency as Cyclone Gabrielle leaves behind a trail of destruction

The New Zealand government declared a state of emergency Tuesday (February 14) across the country’s North Island, which has been battered by Cyclone Gabrielle.

According to Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty, the declaration enables the government to support six regions where local emergencies had already been declared and provide additional resources.

Heavy downpour in the country has triggered widespread flooding, power outages and road closures, leading to forced evacuations.

“This is a significant disaster with a real threat to the lives of New Zealanders,” McAnulty told reporters in the capital Wellington. The state of emergency applies to the country’s largest city Auckland, as well as the regions of Northland, Tairawhiti, Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Hawkes Bay.

A weather station in the Hawkes Bay and Napier region had recorded three times more rain overnight than what usually falls for the entire month of February, MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris said. “It’s going to be wet, sodden, devastation around there,” Ferris told Australian Broadcasting Corp. “We’ve seen the worst of the storm now,” Ferris added. “We’ve just got to get through today.”

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins was briefed by the emergency response in Auckland, the city which two weeks ago was swamped by a record-breaking storm that killed four people. Hipkins said the military was already on the ground on the hardest-hit northern reaches of the North Island helping with evacuations and keeping essential supplies moving. “I want to acknowledge the situation New Zealanders have been waking up to this morning,” Hipkins told reporters.

“A lot of families displaced. A lot of homes without power. Extensive damage done across the country.” “It will take us a wee while to get a handle on exactly what’s happened and, in due course, helping with the clean-up when we get to that point,” Hipkins added. Much of Auckland ground to a halt Monday as train services were cancelled, libraries and most schools were closed, and authorities asked people to make only essential trips. Air New Zealand cancelled all domestic flights to and from Auckland through Tuesday morning, as well as many international flights.

Some international routes would continue operating, airline officials said, although they might need to be diverted from Auckland. The carrier also cancelled domestic flights to and from the cities of Hamilton, Tauranga and Taupo. In all, Air New Zealand cancelled more than 500 flights. More than 10,000 international customers had been affected, the airline said, with thousands still to be rebooked.

(With inputs from agencies)