Canterbury flooding: Trapped woman, children rescued from car

A woman and two children have been rescued after being trapped in their car amid rising flood waters in North Canterbury.

'Threat to life': Highest level wind warning for Wellington

Large parts of the country are being hammered as torrential rain, gale-force winds, high seas and heavy snow bear down.

Many weather warnings and watches remain in place for Canterbury, the top of the South Island and lower North Island, and the East Cape.

Fire and Emergency NZ said the dramatic rescue today showed the perils of swiftly rising flood waters.

Fire-fighters received an emergency call from the woman trapped with two young children in her car on a bridge over the Cust River at 11.30am today, RNZ reported.

She told them she could not go forward or back because her car was surrounded by water as high as fence posts.

FENZ spokesperson Ian Littlejohn says crews rescued the trio before notifying police and advising the council to shut the road. He urged people to stay off the roads.'

A state of emergency has been declared for the Selwyn district as heavy rain lashes the Canterbury region.

A wind warning in Wellington has been escalated to red until 3am on Friday and includes Wellington City, Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt and Porirua.

Forecaster MetServices says "destructive" winds could cause widespread damage. There is a possibility of "threat to life" from falling trees and other items and could be significant disruption to transport, and power supply.

The severe winds and high sea swells are affecting transport into and throughout Wellington today.

All flights in and out of the capital have been cancelled until 6pm today, including international flights. Jetstar and Sounds Air have cancelled all flights for the remainder of the day.

The 10.10am flight and 4.25pm flight from Wellington to Dunedin has been cancelled, as have the 10.45am flight and 5pm from Dunedin to Wellington.

Cook Strait ferry crossings have been cancelled until late on Friday afternoon (Interislander) or Saturday (Bluebridge), due to high swells.

It was like a winter wonderland in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park this morning. This image was taken at the Hermitage Hotel. PHOTO: JOHN KNOX

Meanwhile, heavy snow has fallen in Canterbury's Mt Cook/Aoraki National Park area and there was a dusting at Coronet Peak ski area near Queenstown.

MetService advised the snow has eased but would still affect state highways throughout Canterbury.

Selwyn state of emergency as rain pelts Canterbury

In Canterbury, Selwyn District Mayor Sam Broughton declared a state of emergency at 5.39am today, following 24 hours of heavy rain in the region and the expert advice from the Environment Canterbury flood controller.

Broughton said the rivers continue to rise and there is significant surface flooding including on roads, with the heavy rain warning in place until 6pm today.

Residents of the Upper Selwyn Huts, where the Selwyn River flows into Lake Ellesmere, were asked to self-evacuate due to concerns of flooding from the river.

“This is a precautionary measure due to potential risk to the residents and their properties. There is an expectation that the community will be cut off, and the river may breach the road and access.”

Doyleston resident Scott Rushton. Photo: RNZ

Houses have been flooded in the small town of Doyleston, with a few hundred people, in Selwyn District.

Resident Scott Rushton told an RNZ reporter at the scene the situation was "the worst I've ever seen. I've been here 10 years but Nick, in the house here, he's been here all his life, he's never seen it like this before."

"The two houses down the back are totally flooded out. It's coming from the high-end, so it just gets coming down heading towards the lake."

The council distributed 250 sandbags to homes in West Melton, Doyleston, and Leeston, while community sandbag stations were set up at community centres in Sheffield and Glentunnel on Wednesday night.

Several schools across the district have closed, including Darfield High, Lincoln High, and Ellesmere College.

Flooding at a Doyleston property today. PHOTO: GEOFF SLOAN/STAR NEWS

Conserve water notices were in place for the Acheron, Arthur's Pass, Dalethorpe, and Hororata water supplies, the council said. "We are encouraging Selwyn residents to conserve water until the supply can be restored. We also ask that you try and minimise water usage in Prebbleton and Lincoln as our wastewater network is becoming overwhelmed, due to the sheer volume of water."

Coes Ford and other fords across the district have closed.

A number of roads were also closed across due to surface flooding. The New Zealand Transport Agency/Waka Kotahi is closely monitoring the Selwyn River State Highway 1 bridge.

Coes Ford in Canterbury's Selwyn District, where a state of emergency has been declared. Photo: RNZ

To the south in the Ashburton District, several roads near Methven are closed after being flooded by Dry Creek. The council reported were no concerns for bridges over State Highway 1, but NZTA is monitoring the situation.

Environment Canterbury flood advisory suggests the main impact of the heavy rainfall remains north of the Rakaia. Ashburton District Council road crews were out checking on the state of the network and asking people to take care with widespread surface flooding across the district.

NZTA reported it has had five crews out attending to potholes on the South Canterbury-Mid Canterbury network. “Some potholes are 300mm deep, so people may see temporary speed limits and crews busily filling them as best they can do.”

The full extent of damage to the roading network across Canterbury won’t be known until the rain stops and surface water recedes.

Heavy rain has been falling in Christchurch, flooding some roads. PHOTO GEOFF SLOAN/STAR NEWS

In Christchurch, part of Fitzgerald Ave near the bridge has been closed, New Brighton Rd between Rawson St and Pages Rd is closed and Avonside Drive between Wainoni Rd and Kerrs Rd is also closed. Hoon Hay has also been hit hard with a section of Gainsborough St under water.

On Banks Peninsula, part of State Highway 75 has been closed due to the high tide. The highway closed from Birdlings Flat to Little River at 11pm yesterday and was unlikely to open before lunchtime today.

Potholes on Deans Ave due to the heavy rain and road renewal works are causing issues for motorists. A contractor has been notified to fix the issue.

Residents with flooding or roading concerns are urged to contact the Christchurch City Council on (03) 941 8999.

How much longer will the storm last?

🌧️ Rain (elevation snow) will persist for much of the day for the eastern South Island, easing late today from south to north.

🌬️ Strong wind through tonight for east coastal SI & the lower NI.

Stay on top of warnings from

@MetService

pic.twitter.com/Rqs5oPJHS5

— NIWA Weather (@NiwaWeather)

April 30, 2025

MetService said there was a high chance an orange heavy rain warning would be upgraded to red in North Canterbury and Kaikōura, with the regional council warning that the torrential rain could result in flooded roads and rivers breaching their banks.

Meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane said it had been been a wet night in eastern parts of the South Island, especially Canterbury, and for parts of the North Island.

The Canterbury region has already had 100 millimetres to 150mm of rainfall over the last 24 hours with more to come, she said this morning, and red warnings were still a possibility. "We'll be keeping a very close eye to see how things develop."

April has been an "extremely interesting" weather month, she said, seeming to pack three months of events into just the four-week period.

"This year has been OK for the Canterbury region, however, this rainfall is falling on extremely sodden ground and I think at any time of year this amount of rainfall would possibly cause issues."

Snowy trails in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park. PHOTO: JOHN KNOX

Snow blankets Aoraki/Mt Cook area

Check state highways here

Snowfall warnings continue throughout the day for the Canterbury High Country and some alpine roads in Canterbury and Otago, MetService advises.

It was a winter wonderland at the Hermitage Hotel in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park, while there was a dusting of snow Coronet Peak ski area near Queenstown.

Alpine roads affected

Lewis Pass (SH7)

Valid: 13 hours from 11am Thu to 12am on Friday.

Snow expected to affect the road near the summit, where 2 to 4cm is likely to accumulate.

Arthur's Pass (SH73)

Valid: 7 hours from 11am until 6pm on Thursday.

Snow forecast to affect the road near the summit, where 1 to 2cm of snow may settle at times. Lesser amounts likely lower down.

Porters Pass (SH73)

Valid: 4 hours from 11am until 3pm on Thursday

Between 3 to 5cm of snow expected to settle on the road near the summit, with lesser amounts to 700 metres.

Lindis Pass (SH8)

Valid: 2 hours from 11am until 1pm on Thursday.

Snow expected to affect the road near the summit, where 1cm or less is likely to settle.

In Otago, the Danseys Pass Road is restricted to 4WD access only (from the gates past the Danseys Pass Hotel) due to snow.

Strong winds in Wellington, ferries and flights cancelled

A wind warning in Wellington has been escalated to red, with MetService warning of "destructive" winds that can cause widespread damage.

The lower North Island is being lashed with gale-force southerlies today, hitting Wellington with some of the strongest winds seen in a decade.

There is a possibility of "threat to life" from falling trees and other items and could be significant disruption to transport, and power supply, the warning said. People should stay inside or seek shelter away from trees.

Sailings cancelled

Interislander Cook Strait ferry crossings have been cancelled until late on Friday afternoon, due to the high swells, while Bluebridge services won't operate until Saturday.

Interislander has cancelled sailings through until 4pm on Friday from Wellington to Picton and 8.50pm from Picton to Wellington.

"All impacted passengers are being contacted directly and we are putting on additional return sailings on Saturday evening and Sunday morning to accommodate impacted customers," the company said this morning.

"We are monitoring the forecasts closely and will advise if further cancellations are required."

Bluebridge has cancelled all its sailings until Saturday morning.

"All customers affected by these cancellations have been advised by email and text. We are monitoring the situation closely and if further sailings are impacted, we will notify you via text and email at the earliest opportunity.

"Additional sailings have been added to our schedule on Saturday to accommodate our affected customers: 1.30pm from Wellington and 7.15pm from Picton."

- reporting by RNZ, ODT Online, Star News and Local Democracy Reporting