Fifty homes have been evacuated in west Auckland and Kumeu is cut off as flooding continues to wreak havoc.
Evacuations override Covid-19 level 4 requirements to stay at home, Auckland Civil Defence says.
Firefighters have resorted to using jet-skis to reach trapped motorists as the township on the Twin Coast Highway is inundated.
Cars and houses are underwater, in some places reportedly up to two metres deep. Owners are trying to rescue farm animals and bridges surrounding the township are now impassable as rising floodwaters surge across roads.
"There's no way in and no way out," said a witness. "All the bridges are flooded."
Houses have been flooded and cars swept away as heavy winds and rain continue to lash the city. An emergency shelter has been set up in Henderson for those who have nowhere to go.
People are calling for help to rescue trapped animals. One woman in Huapai posted on Facebook a request for a dinghy, saying her family and animals were stuck inside with the bottom floor of the house fully submerged in water.
"We have pushed ourselves to the limit swimming horses in and bringing them up into the second level of our house."
He asked locals if they could kayak in some hay or horse feed.
A witness this morning said it was "absolute chaos".
"There's one car parked with water up to its windows. There's a stream running off the buildings and footpaths, cars are floating around," he said.
"I've never seen anything like this."
A resident in Taupaki, near Kumeu, told TV1's Breakfast the worry was that it was still raining this morning - so the water is still rising.
She showed the outside of their property completely flooded and the outside furniture floating. She also described seeing "waves" of water coming down the street in the early hours of this morning.
Niwa said there had been an "incredible" amount of rain, with parts of west Auckland seeing 140-180mm or more.
Newstalk ZB says it has had reports of flooding in Henderson, Waitakere, Ranui, Kumeu, Piha and Bethells Beach. At least one home had been evacuated in Te Atatū South, RNZ reported.
50-60 homes evacuated - mayor
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff said he was hearing 50-60 homes could be evacuated.
People had largely been self-evacuating and staying with family and friends but there was a shelter in the council building in Henderson.
"I'm imagining that some people will need accommodation..we may need to make provision for people," Goff said.
He told RNZ it never rains it pours. "We've been dealing with drought and now we've got this."
The news was "traumatising" for people who had already been dealing with lockdown.
West Auckland councillor Shane Henderson said about 50 homes had been evacuated in Kumeu and the nearby area. Houses were also evacuated in Henderson Valley, he said.
"Ranui's looking tough, Piha's looking tough," Henderson told Newstalk ZB.
"We're not out of the woods yet," Henderson told Newstalk ZB.
Henderson recommended people bring essential items when they evacuated and remember to wear a mask and to try to social distance.
The main council building in Henderson was being set up as a shelter and if people needed to they should head there. Covid-19 protocols were still in place.
Civil Defence officials this morning told Newstalk ZB they still don't know the full extent of the damage and more people may need to evacuate.
Evacuations would override level 4 requirements to stay at home, Auckland Emergency Management deputy controler Rachel Kelleher told Kate Hawkesby.
People should socially distance where possible, she said.
'Houses are underwater'
More than 150 calls about flooding have come in to the fire service overnight - the majority from West Auckland.
A witness told the Herald numerous homes were flooded in and around Birdwood Rd in Swanson and cars were being swept down the road.
"Houses are underwater, cars are flooded and kids are being plucked from their homes in their pyjamas."
The witness said emergency services were out trying to help people and it's understood at least one home was at risk of collapsing.
Another man and his wife were fleeing with one bag of belongings, all they had time to grab as the water rose through their home.
"It is just absolutely teeming down, the rain is just driving so hard."
"It's still an emerging situation," Auckland's Civil Defence deputy controller Rachel Kelleher said this morning.
150 calls for help overnight
Auckland Civil Defence Emergency Management had been monitoring the heavy rain and wind conditions since just after midnight.
In a statement, Fire and Emergency said it is continuing to respond to calls about flooding around Auckland.
"Between 9.30pm and 4am, we received more than 150 calls for assistance.
"Most of the calls related to flooding into residential properties. We were also called to help people stuck in vehicles.
"We were called to incidents right across Auckland and the North Shore, with the bulk being in West Auckland, and up to Kumeu."
Henderson volunteer firefighters overnight said they were busy dealing with multiple calls to flooding, trees and powerlines that had come down and people trapped by floodwaters.
Residents in and around Kumeu have also reporting flooded roads, backyards and streams that have breached their banks while a family in Whenuapai said the gusts were so strong their trampoline was blown over.
MetService meteorologist Daniel Corrigan said some parts of West Auckland had recorded close to 90mm of rain in the 12 hours to 1am.
Some areas in Auckland had also recorded 20mm-30mm of rain in an hour.
And, the rain wasn't expected to stop overnight.
"We are expecting to see more rain for most of the day."
The flooding comes after the Auckland region saw about 400 lightning strikes over a roughly three-hour period Monday evening - putting on a light show for two days in a row.
While some areas are more prone to thunder and lightning than others, it's unusual anywhere in New Zealand to see lightning and thunder two days in a row, said MetService forecaster Allister Gorman.
"We usually share them around more," he said.
Most of the Auckland thunderstorms on Monday were around Helensville and Kaipara Harbour.
"The Auckland area is under a moderate risk of thunder storms until tomorrow morning," but it's unlikely to compare to last night's spectacular show," Gorman said.
The region remains under a heavy rain watch due to a slow-moving front, meaning people should be wary while travelling or if in flood-prone areas. While not all areas will be hit by heavy rain, it remains a possibility.
"There is some uncertainty as to exactly where the heaviest rain will fall, but rainfall amounts may approach warning criteria in the vicinity of this rain-band," MetService has warned on its website.
The thunderstorms are expected to move north towards Cape Reinga on Tuesday, possibly leaving New Zealand by Wednesday, Gorman said.
