New Zealand’s North Island braces for more flooding and severe gales, with one death reported and thousands without power after a major storm.

SYDNEY: New Zealand’s weather forecaster warned on Sunday that more flooding could hit the country’s North Island.

This comes a day after floods caused widespread power outages, road collapses, and home evacuations.

The severe weather was linked to the death of a man whose vehicle was submerged on a highway.

The weather bureau said there was a “threat to life from dangerous river conditions, significant flooding and slips”.

A deepening low-pressure system east of the North Island was bringing heavy rain and severe gales to several regions.

The worst weather was forecast to hit late on Sunday, with a slow easing of conditions expected on Monday.

Heavy rain began battering large swathes of the country on Friday, sparking the initial floods.

Authorities had a state of emergency in place for the districts of Waipa and Otorohanga.

This agricultural region is home to about 10,000 people and is located 180 km south of Auckland.

The Otorohanga District Council said geotechnical teams had spent the night assessing slips and checking road stability.

Some 4,291 properties remained without power on the North Island, according to energy company Powerco.

On Saturday, a man apparently died in his car in floodwaters, authorities confirmed.

About 80 people were evacuated to an emergency centre due to the flooding.

Images shared on social media showed vast semi-rural neighbourhoods submerged under water.

Other pictures revealed collapsed sections of road where floodwaters had receded.

This latest severe weather follows a deadly incident in January.

Six people were killed after heavy rains triggered a landslide at Mount Maunganui on the North Island’s east coast.

That landslide brought down soil and rubble on a site crowded with families on summer holidays.

 The Sun Malaysia