Warning lifted as cyclone moves on

All calm on The Strand in Tauranga.

A severe weather warning issued for the Bay of Plenty has now been lifted.

The centre of Cyclone Cook lay close to Rotorua at 8pm Thursday and is expected to move southwards reaching Wairarapa in the early hours of Friday morning.

"On this track, damaging severe gales with gusts of 140 km/h or more are possible, affecting regions from Gisborne down to Wellington," says the MetService.

"Heavy rain has eased over Auckland, Great Barrier Island, Coromandel Peninsula and Bay of Plenty and the warnings there are now lifted."

Heavy rain further south should gradually ease from the north over the next 12 hours.

The centre of the low is now far enough east of Auckland that the risk of severe gales there has eased and the wind warning for Auckland is now lifted.

The latest update from the Civil Defence

There have been power outages in Whakatane, Te Puke, Papamoa, Matakana Island, Te Puna, Welcome Bay, Paengaroa and Pongakawa.

Many trees are down on roads throughout the region. Some roads have been blocked by slips and powerlines.

The storm surge was expected to peak with high tide at 9pm.

Crews will be out at first light to assess the full extent of any damage caused by flooding, slips and wind damage.

Current state highway closures in Bay of Plenty and Waikato regions

The NZ Transport Agency says many roads have closed or remain closed in the Bay of Plenty and Waikato after the severe weather event.

The eastern Bay of Plenty has several closures because of fallen power lines and slips. State Highway 29 the Kaimai Range is also now closed after a large slip.

All of the closures will stay in place overnight and contractors will be out on the state highway network at first light assessing any damage and beginning work where they can.

People can report any further damage to 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49).

Bay of Plenty – current closures

· State Highway 2 between Ohiwa Beach Road and Opotiki is closed because of slips.

· State Highway 34 is closed at Otakiri between Edgecumbe and Te Teko because of fallen power lines.

· State Highway 30 between Thornton Rd and Awakeri is closed because of fallen power lines.

· State Highway 2 near Pikowai camping ground on the Matata straight is closed because of fallen tree and powerlines. It will remain closed tonight.

· The roads closed during Cyclone Debbie or previous projects (SH2 Edgecumbe, SH2 at Waimana Gorge, SH2 Pekatahi Bridge) in the Eastern Bay of Plenty remain closed.

· State Highway 29 Kaimai Range is also currently closed because of a large slip at the bottom of the Waikato side. Not expected to open tonight.

State Highways closed in eastern Bay of Plenty.

Waikato – current closures

State Highway 29 Kaimai Range is currently closed because of a large slip at the bottom of the Waikato side. Not expected to open tonight.

State Highway 25 – Thames-Coast Rd is closed from Tararu to Preece Point because of several slips and won't be opening in the near future.

Motorists can get real time information from:

• 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49)

• www.nzta.govt.nz/traffic

For Waikato/Bay of Plenty updates:

• www.facebook.com/NZTAWaikatoBoP/

• www.twitter.com/NZTAWaiBoP


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