{"id":12219,"date":"2026-04-20T17:14:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T05:14:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/?p=12219"},"modified":"2026-04-20T17:17:47","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T05:17:47","slug":"state-of-emergency-declared-after-flash-flooding-hits-wellington-more-severe-weather-expected","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/?p=12219","title":{"rendered":"Wellington Plunged Into Emergency as Red Warnings Issued and Severe Weather Escalates"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Sarah McMillan\/cvnznews.com<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Updated 5pm Monday 20 April<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Wellington region has been placed under a state of emergency<\/strong> as torrential rain, flash flooding and landslides hammer the lower North Island, with authorities warning the worst weather is still to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MetService has upgraded Wellington and Wairarapa<\/strong> to red heavy\u2011rain warnings<\/strong> \u2014 its highest alert level \u2014 signalling a \u201cthreat to life\u201d from dangerous river conditions, rapidly rising water, and widespread slips. The agency says slow\u2011moving thunderstorms are dumping intense, localised rain, with residents describing the downpours as \u201ctorrential\u201d and streets turning into fast\u2011moving streams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Civil Defence says the situation is volatile and evolving by the hour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u014chura Residents Told to Prepare to Evacuate<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

While the state of emergency has been lifted in Whanganui District<\/strong>, it remains in place for the \u014chura Ward in Ruapehu District<\/strong>, where Civil Defence is warning of \u201clife\u2011threatening flooding\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Residents are being urged to leave immediately if they feel unsafe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Landslides Hit Wellington<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Emergency services have responded to multiple slips across the capital, including a landslide that crushed a Wellington home<\/strong>, caving in two bedrooms and a bathroom while tenants were asleep. No fatalities have been reported, but authorities say the risk of further slope failures remains high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flights Cancelled <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Wellington Airport has confirmed 27 flight cancellations<\/strong> \u2014 13 arrivals and 14 departures \u2014 as southerly winds gust close to 90km\/h<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe southerly wind has picked up strongly this afternoon and is causing some disruptions,\u201d an airport spokesperson said, urging passengers to check directly with airlines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MetService: \u201cThreat to Life\u201d Across Lower North Island<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Red Warnings<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  • Wairarapa<\/strong> \u2014 red heavy\u2011rain warning until midnight tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Wellington (excluding Porirua)<\/strong> \u2014 red heavy\u2011rain warning until 9pm tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    MetService says conditions will:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • disrupt travel<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • make some roads impassable<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • isolate communities<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • trigger significant flooding and slips<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
      Orange Warnings<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      • Tararua District<\/strong> \u2014 heavy rain until midnight tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Kaik\u014dura Coast & North Canterbury ranges<\/strong> \u2014 heavy rain until 11pm tonight<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
        Heavy Rain Watches<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
          \n
        • Taihape, Whanganui, Manawat\u016b<\/strong> \u2014 until midnight tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Hawke\u2019s Bay south of Cape Kidnappers<\/strong> \u2014 until midnight tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Horowhenua, K\u0101piti Coast, Porirua<\/strong> \u2014 from 6pm today to 9pm tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Marlborough Sounds & Havelock area<\/strong> \u2014 until 11pm tonight<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
          Strong Wind Watches<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
            \n
          • K\u0101piti Coast, Wellington, Marlborough Sounds<\/strong> \u2014 until 9pm tonight<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Buller, Grey, Westland<\/strong> \u2014 until noon tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Taranaki<\/strong> \u2014 from 9pm tonight to 9pm tomorrow<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
            Minister: \u201cThe Worst Weather Is Still Ahead\u201d<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

            Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell<\/strong>, who toured affected areas with Wellington Mayor Andrew Little<\/strong>, warned residents to prepare for further deterioration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u201cI want to acknowledge the proactive work done by the regional council to prepare for the worst of the weather which we expect this evening,\u201d Mitchell said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \u201cIf you are in the Wellington region, be prepared. If you are going to evacuate, make those decisions early. Stay out of floodwaters and comply with instructions from first responders.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            By Sarah McMillan\/cvnznews.com Updated 5pm Monday 20 April The Wellington region has been placed under a state of emergency as torrential rain, flash flooding and landslides hammer the lower North Island, with authorities warning the worst weather is still to come. MetService has upgraded Wellington and Wairarapa to red heavy\u2011rain warnings \u2014 its highest alert<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12220,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[113,1004,399],"coauthors":[709],"class_list":{"0":"post-12219","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-zealand","8":"tag-new-zealand","9":"tag-weather-warning","10":"tag-wellington"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12219","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12219"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12219\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12224,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12219\/revisions\/12224"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12219"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12219"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12219"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvnznews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcoauthors&post=12219"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}