Auckland and parts of Northland were slammed with heavy rain and flooding as wild weather lashed the upper North Island on Monday morning.
There were severe weather warnings for Kaipara, Rodney, Albany, Auckland City and Waitākere, but MetService has lifted thunderstorm warnings for Auckland.
There are still, however, warnings in place for Waikato and the Coromandel Peninsula.
The wet weather left as quickly as it arrived. (Source: 1News)
NIWA climate station at Mangere in Auckland notched its wettest hour on record between 9am to 10am - 52mm. The previous record was 36.4 mm.
NIWA climate station in Albany, Auckland recorded earlier this morning 76.8mm of rain in an hour between 8am to 9am Monday.
Ellerslie was one Auckland suburb hard-hit by Monday’s downpour. (Source: Supplied)
There's been torrential rain in Whangārei this morning, with MetService reporting 64mm of rain falling in one hour earlier Monday.
NIWA said lightning and rain has decreased and shifted south and east of Auckland City.
MetService is warning gusty northeast winds are spreading down the country.
There was surface flooding in parts of central Auckland, with video showing Fanshawe St, among others, with large amounts of water on it.
A number of Countdown supermarkets across Auckland have closed following the heavy rainfall and flooding including Milford, Pt Chevalier, Glenfield and Pukekohe.
Glenfield and Pt Chevalier Countdown have received roof damage and will remain closed for at least the rest of the day and the other stores are expected to open later today.
Due to surface flooding, three southbound lanes on SH1 were blocked after Penrose Rd overbridge, the transport agency said.
There were been a number of calls for assistance to emergency services across the city after vehicles become submerged.
Police urged motorists to drive with extreme caution, particularly in areas where there is surface flooding as there could be hidden hazards.
Some schools have closed including Orewa College, St Mary's College and Tui's Nest early learning Centre on Auckland's North Shore.
Flooding has impacted cabinetmakers Woodstar in Mt Roskill.
A creek at the back of the business has flooded, sending water into its downstairs work area.
It has also set containers on the property afloat.
Photos taken about 15 minutes apart showed the water level in the downstairs area progressively rising.
Police says a number of areas on Auckland's North Shore had surface flooding, including Greenhithe, Hillcrest and Albany.
A vehicle was been partially submerged on Sunnybrae Rd in Northcote.
Lightning was observed in Auckland and the lower Northland regions with more then 4000 lightning strikes in an hour earlier Monday, including over 700 in 5 minutes.
Drivers navigating Fanshawe St had to be extra careful on Monday morning. (Source: 1News)
There was also surface flooding in Northland following heavy rain.
"Reports of surface flooding have been received around the Western Hills Drive area of State Highway 1 and State Highway 10 near Kerikeri," police said.
Purerua in the Bay of Islands saw 133mm of rain in 12 hours, with 102.4mm falling between 1am and 3am.
SHARE ME