Police in the Auckland region are continuing to respond to a high number of calls to weather-related incidents after the severe weather yesterday and overnight.
Yesterday evening about 7.30pm, Police responded to a call for service where a man had been found deceased in a flooded culvert in Wairau Valley.
About 12.30am, Police were called to a flooded carpark on Link Drive, also in Wairau Valley, after a report of another man found deceased.
Enquiries into the circumstances of both these deaths are ongoing.
A report was received about 10.15pm that a man had been swept away by floodwaters in Onewhero. A search and rescue team will deploy today to search for the missing man.
And about 7.35pm, Police and other emergency services responded to a call where a landslide had brought down a house on Shore Road, Remuera.
One person remains unaccounted for. The property will be assessed this morning.
Police continue to urge people to stay home and not drive unless absolutely necessary today.
Many roads are closed in the region due to flooding and slips, making it extremely dangerous to be on the roads.
SH1 from Puhoi to Warkworth is completely closed, as is SH16.
Last night, the new stretch of motorway between Puhoi and Warkworth was opened for a brief period to divert traffic and ease heavy congestion.
This detour is no longer in use and Police are asking people not to attempt to travel that way.
The airport is expected to remain closed until at least midday.
‘We will continue to support lead agencies today as they work to establish the extent of the damage and to assist those in need,’ said a police spokespeson.
Meanwhile Aucklanders posted videos on social media of the flooding around the city.
#flooding #auckland #epsom out front pic.twitter.com/mH1j3p74sm
— Lloyd Budd (@lloydbudd_) January 27, 2023
Drive it like you rented it. #rain #flooding #escooter pic.twitter.com/QhwKMaAuWF
— William Denton (@willdento) January 27, 2023
#flooding #epsom #auckland pic.twitter.com/tuNnu0K2rN
— Lloyd Budd (@lloydbudd_) January 27, 2023
Auckland rain is proper crazy today. #AucklandWeather #flooding pic.twitter.com/oZZQGHDcFL
— David J. Veer (@DavidJVeer) January 27, 2023
Paknsave Glenfield, Auckland. #flooding #AucklandWeather pic.twitter.com/Fw3BiEzn3i
— Katherine❄️ (@katiesilvers89) January 27, 2023
Staggering images of the #flooding in #Auckland. Stay at home and stay safe friends 💪 pic.twitter.com/dzYI8I5PtZ
— Jess Timings (@JessTimings) January 27, 2023
Will struggle to get out of the gym car park tonight … #Auckland #flooding pic.twitter.com/qKtx52b9iz
— Niels Meinderts (@NielsMderts) January 27, 2023
Bus drivers getting people home safely in the #flooding #AucklandWeather #AucklandWeather #NewZealand #flooding #airport #aviation #AvGeek #avgeeks #flights #Travel #traveler #FlyAirNZ #AirNewZealand #AucklandWeather #auckland #NewZealand #aucklandfloods #Emergency pic.twitter.com/dbuknpdDka
— Harish Deshmukh (@DeshmukhHarish9) January 27, 2023
This is Auckland, New Zealand today! #aucklandflooding #Newzealand #AucklandWeather #auckland #NewZealand #Newzealand #aucklandfloods #Auckland #flooding pic.twitter.com/QOgSGmfbTs
— Harish Deshmukh (@DeshmukhHarish9) January 27, 2023
RIP to the people caught up in this.
The clues are all there in the names…..Wairau- many waters. In fact Wai means water so anything with wai in the name is a real clue. Shore road – used to be a shore so the land is reclaimed hence the large cliffs behind. Beach Road, Parnell same thing. Not many know but where Victoria Park is in central Auckland used to be all water. In fact they stored the logs there and used the water to move them to the mill for sawing. An old man once showed me photos he had taken back in the early 1900s of it and I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen the photos. Freeman’s bay actually used to be a bay but due to the reclaimation of the land, there is no longer water. Also the motorway below St Mary’s Bay is all reclaimed because, you guess it, it used to be a bay with water in it. Water cannot be compressed, it will find ways around any barrier you may put in its way as it always has to go somewhere. Build an area up and the water just moves to another lower lying area.