A downed tree in Homewood Road, Riversdale, Wairarapa today. Photo: Supplied / Paul Williams
A person has died, thousands are without power and evacuation warnings have been issued while scrub fires burn, as gales continue to pummell the country.
In Wellington a man was killed after being struck by a falling branch in Mount Victoria on Tuesday morning.
Hataitai resident Kirsten Johnstone told RNZ she came across a man lying unconscious under a tree and called an ambulance.
She said it was clear he'd been hit on the head.
The man was taken to hospital where he died a short time later.
The scene at Mount Victoria after the man was fatally hit. Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii
In Wairarapa thousands of properties were still without power on Tuesday evening, and hundreds of Hutt Valley properties had also been affected.
Wairarapa lines company Powerco said some households would remain without power overnight.
"Our teams are working in very challenging conditions, with multiple trees down across power lines and broken poles," said head of network operations Mark Dunn.
"It's been unsafe for our crews to even attempt to climb poles to make repairs in these winds. Unfortunately, due to the scale of the damage, some customers will remain without power overnight."
A tree that was brought down in the wind in Hawke's Bay. Photo: RNZ/ Anusha Bradley
Meanwhile, council contractors were clearing local roads of trees and debris and authorities were urging people to avoid travel.
Some Wairarapa bus services were cancelled, as was the East by West Ferry between Wellington and Eastbourne.
Fire and Emergency said it had handled more than 130 weather-related calls in Wellington and Wairarapa - mostly due to roofs being blown off and falling trees.
Flights in and out of the capital have resumed but Wellington Airport said disruptions will continue.
People leaving Christchurch Airport amid the disruption to flights today. Photo: RNZ/Nathan Mckinnon
Evacuations in Kaikōura
Schools and homes in Kaikōura have been evacuated as firefighters battle six fires fanned by strong winds.
Smoke is visible from across the water in Kaikōura. Photo: Supplied / Ange McCarthur
State Highway 1 is closed between Kaikōura and Blenheim, where the wind also brought down trees and overturned two campervans.
Power is out to about 800 homes and businesses in Kaikōura.
Police said a number of cordons were in place with multiple road closures. An evacuation centre has been set up at Takahanga Marae.
Fire and Emergency assistant national commander Ken Cooper told Checkpoint people should leave if they feel unsafe.
"Across Marlborough and Canterbury our crews are working extremely hard to contain fires and we're really prioritising incidents where there is life risk, so that's where there's potentially structure fires in the path of a fire," he said.
"We want to really stress if anyone feels unsafe in their house they should self-evacuate."
MainPower said it was working to restore power in Kaikōura.
"This is fragile situation and you may lose power more than once. Ensure devices are charging when possible," the company said.
Strong winds have also blown over vehicles and snapped trees in the Hurunui District.
There were mass cancellations at Christchurch Airport as wild weather disrupted flights. Photo: RNZ / Nathan Mckinnon
Elsewhere, flights were cancelled at Christchurch Airport and a tree fell on a school bus just before children were due to be picked up at Rapaki near Lyttelton.
Air New Zealand said customers travelling on Tuesday should monitor the company's app for the latest flight information.
People queue for information amid flight disruptions at Christchurch Airport. Photo: RNZ/Mark Stevens
Evacuation warnings in Hawke's Bay
Fire and Emergency said residents in the rural central Hawke's Bay settlement of Pōrangahau should prepare to evacuate as scrub fires continue to burn.
Cooper told Checkpoint crews from Wellington and Palmerston North were being brought in to help.
"We have issued an emergency management alert to residents in Pōrangahau to prepare to evacuate," he said.
"We're finding conditions extremely challenging, strong winds are really hampering our crews' firefighting efforts," he said.
FENZ said five fires were currently burning in Hawke's Bay.
The largest was near Mangaorapa near a pine plantation, there's another near Pōrangahau and in Wallingford, and there are small fires in Puketitiri and Ongaonga.
Graeme Burnard's beloved 22-year-old Lexus was crushed by a tree in Wairarapa. Photo: Supplied/Graeme Burnard
Car crushed, furniture flying
A resident in Gladstone, Wairarapa said he was having a coffee when he heard an "almighty crash" and discovered his beloved 22-year-old Lexus had been crushed by a tree.
"The car was parked right behind the house, [we] went out and here's this enormous tree which has gone right across the car, it's missed the house by about two metres," Graeme Burnard said.
The windscreen, boot and roof were smashed in and he was not sure whether it could be saved, he said.
He was thankful he and his wife, the chickens and the cat were safe.
"But it is very sad because it was my favourite car, I've had it for a while and I just loved it."
People had posted on social media pictures and videos of busted trampolines being lifted to neighbouring properties, wheelie bins skating across the road, and furniture flying.
A wrecked trampoline at a Wellington property. Photo: Supplied
Flights disrupted
Passengers travelling through Wellington Airport described "gripping their seats" through rocky landings in the capital on Tuesday morning.
Lines of passengers were waiting at the airport's information desk trying to find out when their flights out of the capital would be, as high winds delayed or cancelled several flights.
Air New Zealand extended the pause on all flights in and out of the capital until 1pm on Tuesday, but they have since resumed.
Passengers RNZ had spoken to were unsure whether they would depart today.
MetService said gusts had reached nearly 150 kilometres an hour at the Remutaka Hill summit and on Wellington's Mt Kaukau.
We’re in the middle of one weather event and preparing for the second.
— MetService (@MetService) October 20, 2025
Heavy rain and severe gales for southern and central New Zealand today.
Another, more intense system arrives on Thursday.https://t.co/tlQGsflafx
Winds are expected to ease about 8pm.
An orange wind warning was in place for Wellington, Wairarapa and Tararua until 8pm, and Hawke's Bay until 9pm.
West Coast flooding and slips
On the West Coast heavy rain caused slips and flooding, closing State Highway 7 through the Lewis Pass and between Dobson and Ngahere.
State Highway 6 was shut at the Inangahua River Bridge because of flooding, as well as State Highway 65 from Shenandoah to Maruia.
People on the coast are line for another drenching, with orange warnings in place for the Westland ranges and Fiordland from midnight on Wednesday.
Heartland Hotel Haast manager Tracey Dinan said she was getting prepared.
"Luckily for the hotel we're at a high point so any flooding sort of goes around us, but we do need to keep watch because we're quite close to the sea and we've got the river right beside us as well," she said.
West Coast Emergency Management's Claire Brown said the region was already saturated so people should expect more flooding on Thursday.
"This is just a really good opportunity for people to do things like clear out the gutters and just check if there's anything on the property that might fly away in a strong wind that that's safely secured," she said.
A flood warning is in place for Canterbury's alpine rivers, as water from swollen upper catchments flows through the lower parts.
More strong winds are also forecast for Canterbury on Thursday, with firefighters urging people not to light fires outside this week.
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