At least four people have died in New Zealand from Tropical Storm Gabrielle, which Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said was the country’s “most severe weather event” this century. One of the fatalities was a firefighter who was buried in a landslide. A child is also among the dead. The tropical cyclone also left thousands of people homeless in New Zealand.
The Hawke’s Bay region of the North Island was hardest hit. Military trucks brought about 9,000 people to safety there, Radio New Zealand reported on Wednesday. Initially, they will be accommodated at a sports center in the town of Hastings.
“Gabrielle” battered New Zealand’s North Island on Monday with winds of up to 140 kilometers per hour. The cyclone brought heavy rain and waves up to 11 meters high. In some places the bodies of water were so high that only the roofs of the houses could be seen. Emergency services were deployed with several helicopters to rescue people who had fled to the rooftops. According to Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty, more than 140,000 people were still without power. He spoke of a “massive, unprecedented weather event”.
There were heavy thunderstorms on Tuesday as well. Officials said the worst appeared to be over on Wednesday, “but we’re not out of the woods yet.”
Meanwhile, Britain’s Princess Anne visited the Crisis Management Center in the capital, Wellington. “I admire the courage of the people of New Zealand in this difficult and worrying time,” she said afterwards. New Zealand is part of the Commonwealth. “My thoughts are with all New Zealanders whose homes or livelihoods were affected by Cyclone Gabrielle.”
The tropical storm moved across the Pacific state with strong winds and heavy rain since Monday. On Tuesday, the government declared a national emergency – for just the third time in the country’s history.
The storm wreaked havoc on the North Island in particular. Bridges were destroyed, roads impassable. Some places were cut off from the outside world. In several places, schools are expected to remain closed until the end of the week. On Wednesday, “Gabrielle” moved to the southern part of the North Island. The MetService weather service warned of heavy rain in the region.