Cyclone Gabrielle has flooded roads, buried houses and claimed over six bridges in the upper North Island.
With climate change predicted to make extreme weather events more common, experts are warning rebuilds will need to factor these in.
Professor John Tookey from AUT's School of Future Environments says it's possible to rebuild infrastructure to withstand extreme weather, but compromises will have to be made.
Professor John Tookey says changes in planning regulations around the development zones will have to be made to ameliorate future weather damage.
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