{"id":243014,"date":"2026-01-20T19:34:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T19:34:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/243014\/"},"modified":"2026-01-20T19:34:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T19:34:10","slug":"northland-weather-alert-civil-defence-urges-residents-to-prepare-for-more-downpours","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/243014\/","title":{"rendered":"Northland weather alert: Civil Defence urges residents to prepare for more downpours"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whang\u0101rei Mayor Ken Couper made it clear the decision was a precautionary move, given the damage already inflicted on the district\u2019s east coast<\/a> \u2013 especially in \u014cakura, Whangaruru, Punaruku and surrounding areas \u2013 and the weather forecast.<\/p>\n

\u201cOther parts of the district could also be impacted and arrangements need to be put in place to ensure people are safe in the areas of concern.\u201d<\/p>\n

Couper said a state of emergency was rare for the district and that people should take the situation seriously.<\/p>\n

\u201cKeep safe and look after your mates.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaipara District Council and Far North District Council were keeping an eye on the weather but had not felt the need to make a similar declaration.<\/p>\n

Civil Defence Northland spokesman Zachary Woods said people should be prepared to stay at home for some time \u2013 even without power.<\/p>\n

He recommended people have a grab bag full of essentials ready to go and to stay up to date on the latest weather and road closure information.<\/p>\n

People in the hard-hit northeast coast were encouraged to stock up on supplies and have emergency plans ready.<\/p>\n

\"LandLand surrounding M\u014dkau Marae was overrun with floodwaters. Photo \/ Whangaruru hau kainga<\/p>\n

Other advice was to know your neighbours, have emergency contacts sorted and have a plan in place for the worst-case scenario.<\/p>\n

Some residents had already found themselves in harrowing situations.<\/p>\n

One man reported hiking 45 minutes to M\u014dkau Marae in \u014cakura after he was woken at about 4.30am on Saturday by floodwaters that had risen around his cabin.<\/p>\n

The force of the river stopped him from being able to open his cabin door \u2013 so he climbed out the window and into chest-high water.<\/p>\n

From there, he hiked to the safety of the marae, where hot showers and beds were available for those in need.<\/p>\n

The marae has Starlink, solar power and space for up to 100 people to sleep.<\/p>\n

Civil Defence Northland was monitoring the unfolding situation closely with MetService and the Northland Regional Council hydrology team.<\/p>\n

\"CivilCivil Defence Minister Mark Mitchell (left) and Shona Morgan, senior regional advisor for the National Emergency Management Agency, visited Whang\u0101rei yesterday to see the impact of the weather. Photo \/ Denise Piper<\/p>\n

It said resources were being positioned around the region so it could respond effectively if needed.<\/p>\n

In terms of power, Northpower has used a helicopter to assess the damage to its network and to plan repairs.<\/p>\n

Several of its crews are on standby because of the heavy rain forecast.<\/p>\n

Whang\u0101rei District Council has asked residents not to put any recycling out for kerbside collection on Wednesday and Thursday because of the weather.<\/p>\n

What you can do to prepare for severe weather:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Clear drains and gutters<\/p>\n

\u2022 Secure any loose outdoor items<\/p>\n

\u2022 Move valuables and vehicles away from flood-prone areas<\/p>\n

\u2022 Relocate stock from low-lying land and bring pets indoors<\/p>\n

\u2022 Have essentials ready in case of power outages or road closures<\/p>\n

\u2022 Have a grab bag and evacuation plan ready and be prepared to stay at home, without power, for several days in case roads are closed.<\/p>\n

\u2022 If at any time you feel you or your wh\u0101nau or property are at immediate risk, call emergency services on 111.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Whang\u0101rei Mayor Ken Couper made it clear the decision was a precautionary move, given the damage already inflicted…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":243015,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[41242,6127,9526,73936,682,12412,26501,4731,1403,29815,2082,6559,130,111,43,139,1067,11225,69,71039,13084,6560,530,61,1865,6859,6634,3552,4998],"class_list":["post-243014","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-alert","tag-already","tag-another","tag-battered","tag-being","tag-brace","tag-civil","tag-days","tag-defence","tag-downpours","tag-for","tag-heavy","tag-more","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-northland","tag-northlanders","tag-nz","tag-onslaught","tag-prepare","tag-rain","tag-residents","tag-to","tag-today","tag-told","tag-torrential","tag-urges","tag-weather"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243014","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243014"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243014\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/243015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243014"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243014"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243014"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}