In about five and a-half hours on Sunday night, the New Zealand Fire Service received 63 calls from Dunedin and Taieri residents related to damage caused by wind gusts reaching 172kmh in some areas.
A further five were recorded in Middlemarch, Oamaru, Weston and Otematata.
A New Zealand Fire Service communications centre spokesman said it was one of the busiest evenings Dunedin firefighters had experienced for some time.
"It pales into insignificance compared to the activity in Christchurch. But it's right up there for Dunedin."
Several roads were closed because of falling trees in the Dunedin area, causing delays for motorists, particularly on the Otago Peninsula.
Roads closed were Burma Rd (from Wakari Rd to Cannington Rd), Flagstaff Whare Flat Rd (from Three Mile Hill to Silverstream Valley Rd), Nisbet St (from Norwood St), Upper Junction Rd (from North Rd to Blanket Bay Rd), Portobello Rd (from Castlewood Rd to Highcliff Rd), Highcliff Rd (from McKerrow St to Camp Rd), and Portobello Rd was closed to one lane at The Cove.
Fulton Hogan supervisor Gordon McGregor said all but two were reopened yesterday.
Upper Junction Rd and Burma Rd remained closed because the trees which had fallen across them were so big.
It was hoped they would be reopened some time today.
"These trees are some of the biggest trees we've seen come down in Dunedin.
"A lot of these trees support themselves in one direction, and they aren't used to being battered by wind from the northwest."
There were still about a dozen trees around Dunedin which looked "a bit suspect" and may need to be cut down for safety reasons, Mr McGregor said.
Larnach Castle was isolated by fallen trees on roads in the vicinity until 11am when they were cleared, receptionist Garry George said.
"There was no access, in or out. We had four people trapped here at the lodge - two of them were anxious to catch a flight at Dunedin airport.
"They were able to leave by 11am, in time to catch their flight," he said.
City Forests supervisor Kevin Marsh estimated about 200 trees were blown over at its Flagstaff and Ferny Hill forests.
Most of them would be salvaged today.
"Hopefully, there won't be too much financial loss.
"We've been lucky. It could have been a lot worse."
Power was cut to 3640 consumers in Tomahawk, Highcliff, Northeast Valley, Halfway Bush and on the Taieri soon after 4.30pm on Sunday, and although supply was restored to most areas by 7pm, Delta staff worked throughout the night and all day yesterday clearing trees from lines and replacing broken power poles.
Delta system control manager Ross Osborne said about 70 consumers were without supply overnight, but power had been restored to all consumers by 6pm yesterday.
The severe winds also affected the Aurora network in Central Otago on Sunday evening when falling trees caused a loss of supply to 610 consumers in Ettrick, Millers Flat, Becks and St Bathans, he said.
Supply was restored to most properties by 10.30pm, with staff working late into the night to repair the damage.
Water to about 300 houses in Opoho was cut when a tree fell on a water main about 10pm on Sunday.
The water supply was restored by about 5pm yesterday, but some residents were upset at the length of time it took to repair.
Insurance Council of New Zealand chief executive Chris Ryan said it was still too early to calculate the cost of the damage caused by the wind.
Despite the chaos caused by the Christchurch earthquake, insurers would respond to any claims by Otago residents without delay, he said.
However, AMI Otago area manager, Owen Clarke, said the insurance company had already received more than 50 claims from customers throughout the region, for damages estimated to be in the tens of thousands of dollars.
He said the most significant claim was for a house in Dunedin which was damaged by a falling tree.
"That was by far the most serious claim for us.
"It could cost about $50,000 to repair."
A State Insurance spokeswoman said there had been no claims for damage due to the wind yet.
