Two men are dead and two other people are missing after raging floodwaters and slips were caused by an unprecedented deluge of rain across the Auckland region.

A state of emergency has been declared across the region, with the airport closed and State Highway 1 closed or restricted in eight areas.

Auckland Emergency Management says staff are out assessing flooding with reports of people being rescued from their roofs.

MetService said a record amount of rain fell in Auckland yesterday when the service issued its highest-level rain warning.

However, emergency teams said less severe weather is forecast for today.

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has declared a state of emergency in the Auckland region, which comes into force immediately and will last seven days.

“This declaration reflects the extent of damage, displacement and disruption caused by this evening’s severe weather event and enables emergency services and response agencies to draw on resources, and enact additional powers, to assist affected Aucklanders,” Brown said in a statement last night.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins’ flight to Auckland to survey the damage was this morning delayed by the weather.

Auckland Airport will only reopen at midday at the earliest, with widespread disruption still expected to flight schedules. Air NZ has warned its operations could take days to fully recover.

There is also widespread damage to homes, while internet and mobile phone outages have also been reported around Auckland, with teams out inspecting infrastructure now.

Watercare has asked North Shore residents to reduce their water use because the area’s wastewater pump station is being overwhelmed.

There is no word yet on whether tonight’s Elton John concert will go ahead, or what other events may be disrupted due to the weather chaos.

Weather warnings

MetService said a record amount of rain had fallen on Auckland in 24 hours - by 1am, the region had recorded 249mm of rain, smashing the previous 24-hour record of 161.8mm, back in February 1985.

MetService had earlier issued a red-level heavy rain warning for Auckland about and south of Cape Rodney until 3am on Saturday, with up to 120mm of rain forecast in addition to the 150-200mm that had already fallen.

The rain was likely to cause significant flooding and dangerous river conditions, MetService said.

Slips and flooding were likely to disrupt travel and make some roads impassable possibly isolating communities, it said.

Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty said on Saturday morning his team are hopeful the worst of the weather is past.

“The most promising thing is that the forecast is less severe than it has been over the last couple of days,” he told Newstalk ZB this morning.

“We’re treading with caution, however, because the rain that Auckland experienced yesterday and last night was far more than forecast.”

Yesterday’s “extreme weather” event happened so fast it caught everyone by surprise, McAnulty said.

“We knew that rain was coming, but not to the extent that it did and not the speed that it did.

This car was trapped in flooding on Auckland's Northern Motorway yesterday as rising water brings traffic going in both directions to a standstill. Photo / Supplied

Aucklanders should only call 111 if life is in danger

Aucklanders were being urged to only call 111 if life was in danger last night as Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) dealt with an increasing number of calls.

Fire crews are dealing with an estimated 1500 calls for assistance but many relate to flooded property. They have been prioritising calls where people are in danger and need to be rescued.

Counties Manukau district manager Brad Mosby said that when people phone with non-urgent requests for help with flooding, it stops people who urgently need help from getting through.

Residents in flood-prone areas urged to plan to evacuate

Aucklanders who yesterday evacuated their homes were urged to return with care this morning.

“We understand Aucklanders will be anxious to return to their homes to survey the damage, but we urge them to do so with caution,” Auckland Emergency Management duty controller Andrew Clark said.

“Please do not drive through floodwaters and remember hazards and debris could lurk beneath the surface, and floodwaters may be contaminated.

Clark said last night people should stay at home and in shelter if it was safe to do so.

He had advised people to check on friends, neighbours and family members, but not to put themselves in danger to do so.

“If you do need to evacuate, please take essential items, like medicines, with you,” he said in a statement last night.

Commander Brad Mosby of Fenz Counties-Manukau said the worst-hit areas appeared to be Swanson and Henderson Valley.

Civil Defence Centres have been set up in the west, north and south at:

• West: St. Leonards Road School, 15 Saint Leonards Rd, Kelston
• North: Massey University Albany Campus, Sir Neil Walters Lecture Theatre, Massey University East Precinct, Albany Expressway SH17
• South: Mana Tukutuku, 32 Riverton Dr, Randwick Park

Those needing to go to the centres should bring with them any essential items such as medication, warm clothing and baby items.

If people need help they are advised to:

• report flooding, damage to drains, or stormwater issues - please log your issue online at www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/report-problem.
• if their life is at risk, phone 111.
• if they need urgent accommodation assistance, phone 0800 22 22 00.
• seek welfare assistance by phoning the Ministry of Social Development on 0800 400 100.

Phone your insurance company

Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty said the first port of call for Aucklanders waking to flooded and damaged properties should be to their insurance company.

“My experience with insurance companies is they have been proactive in severe weather events and this one I expect will be no different,” he said.

He said that during the recent Nelson floods a community centre was set up and most of the insurance companies had teams there that people could call into and sit down and talk through their situation with.

“And I would hope something like that would happen in Auckland also.”

State highway closures

SH1 Orewa to Warkworth, northbound:

• Due to flooding and slips, SH1 is closed between Grand Dr and Warkworth. Expect delays.

SH1 Warkworth to Puhoi:

• Due to slips and flooding, SH1 is closed between Woodcocks Rd and Grand Dr. Expect delays.

SH1 Whangārei to Brynderwyn:

• Due to a slip south in the Brynderwyn Hills, SH1 is closed from SH12 intersection to Waipu. Expect delays. Freight and heavy vehicles should detour via SH12 – light vehicles via Waipu/Mangawhai.

SH1 Mangamuka Gorge:

• Due to multiple large slips and dropouts, SH1 is closed between Kitchen Rd and Makene Rd through the Mangamuka Gorge. Please use an alternative route until further notice.
• This is from last year’s weather event. Detour via SH10.

SH Northern Busway:

• Due to flooding and road damage, SH1 Northern Busway is closed. Expect delays.

SH1 Fanshawe St to Curren St (Saint Marys Bay):

• Due to slips, on SH1 between Fanshawe St and Curran St northbound one lane is open. Expect delays.

SH1 Bawden Rd to Greville Rd:

• Due to a slip, SH1 between Bawden and Greville Rd northbound one lane is open. Expect delays.

SH 1 SEART Off-ramp:

• Due to flooding, SH1 SEART off-ramp southbound is closed. Expect delays.

SH16 Great North Rd off-ramp and Great North:

• Due to flooding and slips, SH16 Great North Rd off-ramp is closed. Expect delays.

SH25 Thames to Coromandel:

• Due to a slip, the road is closed between Waiomu and Tapu.
• No detour available

SH25A Kopu to Hikuai:

• Due to further cracking at a large washout location, SH25A between Kopu and Hikuai is closed until further notice. Plan ahead and use alternative routes.
• Detour via SH26/SH2

Power outages

Power company Vector said yesterday’s flooding has impacted the electricity network causing widespread outages, particularly in West Auckland.

Emergency services requested that Vector shut down power in some of the worst-hit areas and homes and businesses would remain without power until the flooding subsided and it was safe to restore power, it said in a statement.

Flooding had made it difficult for crews to reach some areas where there were outages, but it was hoped they would be able to do so by morning, Vector said.

Vector urged everyone to take extreme care, avoid floodwaters and stay well clear of fallen power lines or damaged electrical equipment and treat them as live at all times.

Anyone using medical equipment that relied on electricity should let their power company know if they were without power, or call 111 if there was an immediate health threat, Vector said.

Phone and internet outages

Telcos are reporting multiple broadband issues, and some mobile network outages - but the issues appear to be small and localised.

On its outage map, Chorus is reporting faults in 15 areas, mostly in southwest Auckland, but also including Wairau Valley on the North Shore and Riverhead in the northwest, plus UFB fibre outages in Mairangi Bay, Grafton and Mt Wellington.

Most of the outages affected fewer than 50 households as of 9am.

A spokesman for Chorus said it had teams on the ground this morning, assessing the state of its network. It expects to update the situation later this morning.

Mobile operator 2degrees told the Herald mobile sites in Sunnynook (adjacent to hard-hit Wairau) were out of action.

Spark is reporting mobile outages in Sunnynook, Dairy Flat and Mangere.

Vodafone has no outages listed.

Water services - reduction of usage urged

Watercare said its treatment plants are operating and tap water is safe to drink.

However, wastewater plants were being overwhelmed in some areas and it called for people to reduce their wastewater use by keeping showers short and not putting on loads of washing.

That was particularly the case for North Shore residents where the wastewater pump station on Wairau Rd had been flooded, destroying the control systems, Watercare said.

“This means the pump station is overflowing into a nearby waterway,” it said.

Residents living in Titirangi, Woodlands Park, Oratia, Green Bay, Waima and elevated sections of Scenic Dr, however, are likely to have no water or low water pressure for at least the next 48 hours, Auckland Emergency Management’s Andrew Clark said.

“A 30-metre-long section of water pipe that ran along Scenic Dr in Titirangi was washed away with the road due to a landslide.

“It will be challenging to repair due to the extent of the damage and access to the site.

“Watercare is sending out water tankers to the area.

“Customers will be able to fill up their water bottles from the tankers.”

Cleaning up

It is important to clean and dry your house and everything in it.

Floodwater may contain sewage and other hazardous materials which can contaminate your home, Auckland Emergency Management’s Clark said.

• If your gas meter has been affected by water or debris, contact your gas supplier.
• Always work safely when cleaning up after a flood by wearing protective clothing and washing hands thoroughly after clean-up and before handling food.
• Keep children and animals away from previously flooded areas until they have been cleaned and made safe.
• Take photos and videos of the damage and anything that needs to be thrown away before starting the clean-up, for insurance purposes.
• Clean up, drain and dry interior areas as quickly as possible. Take out everything that is wet and that can be moved – floor coverings, furniture, bedding, clothing, etc and put them outside to dry when the weather is fine.
• Throw away all food and drinking water that has come in contact with floodwater, including things stored in containers.
• Do not eat garden produce if the soil has been flooded. Clean up and remove debris and sprinkle gardens with lime.

Concert cancellations

The Elton John concert scheduled for Mt Smart Stadium on Friday night was cancelled, but there were already around 11,000 people at the stadium when the announcement was made.

Frontier Touring publicist Maria Robinson earlier said a decision was yet to be made as to whether Saturday night’s concert would go ahead.

Disappointed fans stream from Mt Smart Stadium as Elton John's concert is cancelled amid heavy downpours in the city. Photo / Alanah Eriksen

Auckland Emergency Management earlier advised that concert-goers may need to consider staying elsewhere last night and that they should check their route was passable before returning home.

The three-day international buskers festival in Auckland cancelled all shows for Friday due to the bad weather.

Organisers of Monday’s Laneway Festival said they were monitoring the conditions but expected it to go ahead.

The fate of Fat Boy Slim’s concert on Sunday is unknown.

Roading

Motorists are being advised to stay off the roads in the Auckland region if possible and not to drive through floodwaters.

Police are warning drivers to take care when travelling through water-logged roads.

Auckland Transport tweeted a list of roads that were closed on Friday night.

Auckland Airport international terminal closed due to flooding

Auckland Airport has closed its international terminal check-in area to visitors due to flooding inside the building.

It asked travellers to get in touch with their airline or their airline travel app for the latest information and any impact on travel plans.

The airport said no flights will be flying in or out until at least after midday.

Scores of international and domestic flights have been cancelled.

Air NZ said it is working through its schedule but has experienced significant disruption that may take a few days to recover from.

Passengers are asked to follow both Auckland Airport and their airline’s travel alerts for more information.

Warning against swimming at Auckland beaches

All Auckland beaches are now rated high or very high risk for swimming as floodwaters overwhelmed wastewater systems.

Auckland’s SafeSwim website said every beach was now at red or black alert, the highest rating.

At black level, residents are advised baldly - do not swim.

- Additional reporting, RNZ