Hawke's Bay Regional Council is asking the National Emergency Management to help cover some of the costs from Cyclone Gabrielle.

The Council is facing an $885 million repair bill, and wants NEMA to chip in $56 million.

Councillor Neil Kirton says the Council could claim back multiple costs - but they're being challenged.

"The air travel by helicopter, etc. to service isolated communities, now we've got NEMA saying- look, we're not going to pay for a whole host of those helicopter costs."

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