The heavy rain and resulting flooding and slips on the east coast of the North Island are now cutting off Gisborne with roads into the Bay of Plenty also awash and closed.

State Highway 2 from Opotiki through the Waiokea Gorge is closed.

Gisborne Civil Defence controller Jon Davies says as well as this, State Highway 35 around the coast and SH5 from Napier to Taupo are open, but only just.

He is advising motorists to simply avoid going there as it is too dangerous.

He says there have been at least three incidents with motorists getting themselves into trouble after misjudging the water's depth.

Jon says the occupants of one truck were forced to sit on their roof and wait for help after becoming stuck in the middle of a flooded road at Ngatapa.

'In another instance, a car hit surface flooding at speed south of Tolaga Bay causing it to flip and roll into the paddock, fortunately with no injuries.”