16 Feb 2023

Devastation revealed - Gabrielle in pictures

6:43 pm on 16 February 2023
Debris piled up in front of a damaged house in Wairoa

A damaged house in Wairoa Photo: Nathan McKinnon

Towns and cities remain cut off by road, with no power or phone connection and dwindling water supplies.

A picture emerged on Thursday of roads, power lines, and telecommunication that may take weeks to reconnect.

State Highway 2 between Napier and Hastings

State Highway 2 between Napier and Hastings Photo: Waka Kotahi

Fire trucks, council, police and electricity crews restore infrastructure in Muriwai

Fire trucks, council, police and electricity crews restore infrastructure in Muriwai which has been cut off Photo: Rayssa Almeida

people stand in mud in front a of a trampoline

Photo: Nathan McKinnon

Fuel is in short supply in Hawke's Bay. Image of a BP petrol station with a sign that says NO FUEL Emergency Services only

Getting fuel to cyclone-hit regions is urgent (A handwritten sign reads NO FUEL, Emergency Services Only) Photo: Sally Murphy

A tractor is used as residents in Raukawa clear a large tree branch that blocked a road towards Maraekakaho.

Local residents in Raukawa clear a large tree branch that blocked a road towards Maraekakaho. Photo: Tess Brunton

Prime Minister press conference in Gisbourne

The Prime Minister spoke to media in Gisborne. He promised to put more urgency behind improving the resilence of the country's infrastructure. But he told reporters the task ahead would be enormous and expensive. Photo: RNZ/ Nate McKinnon

Residents in Tairāwhiti and Wairoa may have to wait days before supply is reconnected. Power has been restored to Gisborne City and parts of Wairoa while Ruatorea, Te Araroa, Tokomaru Bay and Tolaga Bay townships, and Mahia, are running on generators.

Wairoa from the air shows flood waters and mud throughout the town

Wairoa on Thursday from the air Photo: Nathan McKinnon

A damaged house

A flood-damaged house in Wairoa Photo: Nathan McKinnon

A shed is knocked off its foundation on a flood-damaged property in wairoa.

Photo: Nathan McKinnon

people stand in mud in front a of a trampoline

(L-R) Lowen vercoe, Toru noanoa, Horowai Cameron, Jasmine Phillips at a house in Te Karaka in Tairāwhiti Photo: Nathan McKinnon

thick mud on the floor of a kitchen

Photo: Nathan McKinnon

a child's bedroom flooded with mud in Gisborne

Photo: Nathan McKinnon

thick mud in a backyard

Photo: Nathan McKinnon

Hawke's Bay Civil Defence controller Ian Macdonald

Hawke's Bay Civil Defence controller Ian Macdonald. Hawke's Bay Civil Defence said this morning its priority was establishing contact with communities that have been isolated since Cyclone Gabrielle hit the region. Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver

A flooded Hawke's Bay orchard after Cyclone Gabrielle.

A flooded Hawke's Bay orchard after Cyclone Gabrielle. Photo: Supplied / Catherine Wedd

Flooding in Hawke's Bay after Cyclone Gabrielle.

Photo: Supplied / Catherine Wedd

Flooding at Dartmoor, north-east of Napier after Cyclone Gabrielle.

Flooding at Dartmoor, north-east of Napier after Cyclone Gabrielle. Photo: Supplied / Sarah Grant

A damaged road in Dartmoor, north-west of Napier after Cyclone Gabrielle.

A damaged road in Dartmoor, north-west of Napier after Cyclone Gabrielle. Photo: Supplied / Sarah Grant

Flood damage at Omaranui Road in Hawkes Bay

Flood damage at Omaranui Road in Hawke's Bay Photo: Jonathan Bixley

Flood debris at Fernhill bridge and Ngaruroro Road in Hawkes Bay

Flood debris at Fernhill bridge and Ngaruroro Road in Hawke's Bay Photo: Jonathan Bixley

Locals and contractors have been busy restoring access to Maraekakaho after the lead up to the bridge was eroded by floodwaters.

Locals and contractors have been busy restoring access to Maraekakaho after the lead up to the bridge was eroded by floodwaters. Photo: Tess Brunton

Household Items piled up on a roadside

Damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in Taradale, Napier Photo: Sally Murphy

A tree has fallen on a building

Damage in Muriwai Photo: Rayssa Almeida

A large uprooted tree in front of a blue sky

Damage near Muriwai Photo: Rayssa Almeida

National Emergency Management Agency advice:

  • Put safety first. Don't take any chances. Act quickly if you see rising water. Floods and flash floods can happen quickly. If you see rising water do not wait for official warnings. Head for higher ground and stay away from floodwater.
  • Do not try to walk, play, swim, or drive in floodwater: even water just 15 centimetres deep can sweep you off your feet, and half a metre of water will carry away most vehicles.
  • If you have evacuated, please stay where you are until you are given the all-clear to go home.
  • If you don't need to evacuate, support those who do by staying home, staying off roads and staying safe.
  • If you are not able to contact your whānau in the heavily affected areas go to Police 105 website and complete the inquiry form or phone 105 and remember to update if you reconnect through other means.
  • Throw away food and drinking water that has come into contact with floodwater as it is often contaminated and can make you sick.
  • If you are without power eat the food from your fridge first, then your freezer. Then eat the food in the cupboard or your emergency kit.
  • People should stay up to date with the forecasts from MetService and continue to follow the advice of civil defence and emergency services.
  • A National State of Emergency is in place for an initial period of seven days and applies to regions that have declared a local State of Emergency.