Welcome Bay ward councillor Hautapu Baker spent the day helping clean up Maungatapu Marae and the Rangataua Sports and Cultural Club, which were badly hit by the tornado that ripped through Tauranga last night.

He said the tornado came through the area around 2am.

Between 60 and 100 people were staying at the marae for a wānanga when they were abruptly awoken by severe winds and shortly evacuated.

“It was a kind of a war zone-type situation down at the marae this morning with broken glass, roofs being lifted off the ablution block, broken windows and doors, big fallen trees and things like that.”

Some of the trees torn down by the tornado were estimated to have been more than 100 years old.

This morning, residents came down “at the crack of dawn” to clean up the debris, bringing chainsaws and wheelbarrows with them.

Until the marae has been declared safe, the local kōhanga will remain closed, Baker confirmed.

“Whānau will just be down here doing what we can to make sure things are safe and, you know, repairing what needs to be repaired.”

 Roofing iron that came off the Maungatapu Marae when a tornado struck last night. Photo / Rosalie Liddle Crawford

Baker said he would soon be catching up with the people in his ward whose houses have been damaged.

SunLive earlier reported a resident of Te Hono St feared losing her home after the sunroom was destroyed in the wild weather.

MetService said one or more tornados were believed to have touched down in Tauranga overnight, charting a course from near Matakana Island over Otūmoetai to the CBD, then Maungatapu and Welcome Bay.

Road closures: Workers abused

People manning road closures in tornado-hit Tauranga have been abused, the city council says.

Welcome Bay Rd and Devonport Rd are closed due to storm damage - with hopes they will reopen later today.

Hamilton St, west of Cameron Rd, has one lane open after earlier being fully closed due to fallen trees.

The council said teams were working flat‑out, alongside contractors and emergency services.

"We have had reports of some abusing those who are manning closures. These closures are not taken lightly and are in place to keep our community safe. We are aware that this can cause frustration for the community, however we ask people to please be considerate to those working."