Feb 14 (Reuters) – New Zealand was bracing for more heavy rains on Saturday after floods swept through one regional centre, causing power outages, road collapses and home evacuations while a man’s body was found in a vehicle submerged on a highway.
The weather system is expected to intensify, with heavy rains, winds of up to 120 km/h (75 mph) and waves reaching seven metres (22 feet) affecting the capital Wellington and other areas from Sunday, New Zealand’s MetService said.
After rain pounded Otorohanga district overnight, an agricultural region of about 10,000 people 180 km (112 miles) south of Auckland, authorities declared a state of emergency and gave a severe weather warning covering the North Island’s east coast, from the Coromandel Peninsula to the Bay of Plenty.
“This is devastating news for our community,” Otorohanga District Mayor Rodney Dow said, referring to the man who apparently died in his car. The authorities didn’t give the man’s name.
“Right now our focus is on supporting those affected by the widespread flooding, as well as the emergency workers and support agencies who are also helping,” Dow told a news conference.
Rain began battering Otorohanga around 2 p.m. (0100 GMT) local time on Friday but worsened through the evening to the point where up to 300mm (11.8 inches) was recorded in about an hour. A pumping system designed to prevent flooding strained under the deluge, Dow said.
“A weather bomb just came across,” he added.
About 80 people had been evacuated by Saturday and authorities set up an emergency centre in a church as local government officials began assessing what Dow described as extensive damage.
Residents who weren’t evacuated were told to stay in their homes and avoid floodwaters.
Images shared on social media showed vast semirural neighbourhoods submerged, with collapsed sections of road where floodwaters had receded. The images showed a vehicle bridge covered in trees and other debris apparently where water had subsided.
(Reporting by Byron Kaye in Sydney; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
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