A city council spokesman said Dunedin’s civil defence emergency management team worked with Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the Police to evacuate students from about 35homes close to the Water of Leith.
An evacuation centre was opened at Dunedin North Intermediate and a small number of people used it on Tuesday night.
Several patients were also evacuated from the Otago Community Hospice to Mercy Hospital as a precaution.
A Dunedin City Council spokesperson said yesterday there were 27 road closures across the city, including significant flooding around Coast Rd to Karitane and a significant amount of shoulder damage and potholes across parts of the roading network.
Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency had closed State Highway 1 between Palmerston and Dunedin.
The council and its contractors had responded to about 120 callouts relating to slips, trees down, localised flooding and other issues
However, so far the city’s infrastructure appeared to have coped well with no reports of significant property damage.
Some outlying communities were without power and the Waikouaiti Library and Waitati School were closed yesterday.
"While the Water of Leith and Lindsay Creek are dropping again, we are continuing to closely monitor waterways across the city."
The council asked people to drive carefully and watch out for ponding and slips.
"We’re also asking everyone to be patient as we respond to callouts across the city ... "
Emergency Management Otago stakeholder engagement adviser Erica Andrews said rain reached up to 140mm across Dunedin and 120mm in North Otago earlier in the week and MetService extended heavy rain warnings yesterday.
Orbus Dunedin’s route 1 bus service to/from Palmerston was suspended and about 10 schools, preschools and kindergartens were closed yesterday.
