New Zealand cancels flights as deluge from cyclone looms

New Zealand's nationalist bearer canceled dozens of flights Sunday arsenic Aucklanders braced for a deluge from Cyclone Gabrielle, 2 weeks aft a record-breaking tempest swamped the nation's largest metropolis and killed 4 people.

Air New Zealand said it was canceling each home flights to and from Auckland done midday Tuesday arsenic good arsenic galore planetary flights. The bearer said immoderate planetary routes would proceed operating, though flights mightiness request to beryllium diverted from Auckland.

The bearer besides canceled home flights to and from the cities of Hamilton, Tauranga and Taupo.

Cyclone Gabrielle was already affecting the bluish portion of New Zealand connected Sunday. On Monday, it was expected to dump up to 250 millimeters (10 inches) of rainfall connected Auckland.

Gabrielle's windspeed was earlier downgraded arsenic the cyclone slowed. Gusts of astir 130 kilometers per hr (80 miles per hour) were expected.

Weather forecaster MetService said it was expecting a "widespread and significant" upwind event, with dense rain, beardown winds and ample waves.

"Please bash instrumentality this seriously, we bash expect terrible upwind is connected the way," New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins told reporters. "So delight marque definite that you're prepared. Make definite that you've got preparations successful spot for either if you person to enactment enactment for a play of time, oregon if you person to evacuate."

Earlier, the cyclone passed adjacent distant Norfolk Island, a territory of Australia that is location to astir 1,750 people.

Emergency Management Norfolk Island Controller George Plant said Sunday it had issued an all-clear. He said determination was immoderate debris connected the roads and immoderate powerfulness lines were down.

"We person been highly fortunate with the transition of the cyclone arsenic the astir destructive winds person conscionable missed us," Plant wrote connected Facebook. "However, determination is inactive sizeable clean-up to beryllium undertaken and it whitethorn instrumentality a portion for services specified arsenic powerfulness to beryllium restored."

As the cyclone began hitting New Zealand's Northland portion connected Sunday, flooding and winds caused immoderate roads to beryllium closed and thousands of homes to suffer power.

Two weeks ago, Aucklanders experienced the wettest time ever recorded successful the city, arsenic the magnitude of rainfall that would typically autumn implicit the full summertime deed successful a azygous day.

Quickly rising floodwaters killed 4 people, caused wide disruption and near hundreds of homes unlivable.