Hundreds were evacuated on Tuesday as the weather bureau in New Zealand’s capital announced an emergency after recording 11 metre waves off the coast. Gale-force winds and rough seas battered New Zealand’s capital of Wellington on Tuesday, forcing ferry and flight cancellations and road closures as authorities urged hundreds of residents along the city’s south coast to evacuate.
“Waves are forecast to rise rapidly through Tuesday morning and early afternoon along the east coasts of the North and South Islands and at the Chatham Islands”, the weather bureau said.
Declaring an emergency, Wellington Mayor Andrew Little said, “You must stay away from the southern coastline,” warning that no emergency worker would help if you’re left behind. The evacuation orders were active early on Tuesday morning as the police was pressed for the task ensuring people moved to higher grounds. Cordons were installed off the coast to ensure nobody headed towards the shore.
No human lives lost and infrastructural damage was reported so far. Local media reports mentioned two women knocked off their feet as the strong wind gusts brought along tall waves. Some flights were cancelled at Wellington Airport where wind gusts were recorded of up to 128 kilometres per hour (80 miles per hour). A light aircraft was briefly blown over by the strong winds at the Wellington airport shortly after passengers disembarked the carrier. Nearly 8 flights have been cancelled. Country’s carrier Air New Zealand has offered rebooking options for flights cancelled. Besides air, sea operations were also affected New Zealand’s North and South Islands on Tuesday.