Levin

Extreme weather has caused havoc across parts of the North Island this morning, with power lines downed, buildings damaged and one person injured after ...

The district council advised that traffic management had been put in place for north - and south-bound State Highway 1 (SH1) traffic. A school in Levin ended up with a neighbour's garage on its property after the tornado struck. "I hope there isn't too much damage at your properties and just look after yourselves." "Catastrophic would be the only word to describe it" - Jay Clarke Police said SH1 was closed between Durham Street and Supercheap Auto due to a "major weather event" and SH57 was also closed between Tararua Road and Queen Street due to a fallen tree. Wanden earlier said in a Facebook video that the "mini tornado" had passed through the town from the west, uprooting trees in the park on Victoria Street and causing power outages and damage to buildings. Two lanes remain available in each direction. Power lines had fallen on a car in Mako Mako Rd and some roofing iron ended up on the tracks in Levin, she said. He said the most significant damage was in the centre of town and the growing area to the southwest had not been too badly affected. Reflecting on the fact only one person had sustained minor injuries, Wanden said the town had "got away pretty lucky, to be honest". "From what I've seen, most of the damage is only in certain parts of the house so ... with a good, heavy tarpaulin, they may be able to still remain in there." Metservice said it recorded a wind gust of 140km/h in the town this morning and it is asking anyone with footage of the weather event to contact them so it can determine whether it was indeed a tornado, or a thunderstorm collapsing in on itself.

A property on Strathmore Ave was badly damaged when furniture from the lounge was torn out through the conservatory windows by the tornado.

She says the tornado tore through the town in a straight line Demand in-store is also high, with the majority of customers coming in to buy gas bottles as they have no power, or screws and rope to secure their roofs Her trampoline was missing, and the clothesline at her house was damaged. "The streetlight which is built up with steel and concrete was swaying in the wind!" Hailstones of 10-20mm and 120km/h wind gusts have been forecast." The council is urging people to stay inside and ensure their animals are also inside and safe.

Drone footage shows approximately 30-50 houses have suffered damage, with further damage to many more fences and other property. Civil Defence Emergency ...

Police officers, Fire and Emergency officers, St Johns, Contractors, Electra and Arborists have all been activated to assist and assess. A traffic management plan has been put in place for north and south bound SH1 traffic. · George Street Visit outages.electra.co.nz for updates to power supply in the district. A rapid response caravan has been set up in the Levin Mall carpark. Hailstones of 10-20mm and 120kmph wind gusts have been forecast.