Far North residents were still mopping up today after a storm left Kaitaia cut off for almost two days and caused widespread flooding and slips across the district.

The deluge started last Wednesday, dumping a month’s worth of rain on some areas and cutting off Kaitaia on Thursday, with slips on State Highway One at Mangamukas and flooding on SH10 at Kaeo and Lake Ohia.

Today, farmers will be trying to dry out paddocks – many still flooded – while home owners and residents will be clearing up debris brought in by the floodwaters.

Yesterday, a catamaran named Justnow was still on Sullivans Beach, in Paihia, after it dragged its anchor or broke mooring line and was blown onto rocks during the storm on Thursday. The bottom of at least one hull has been ripped out.

Deputy Northland harbourmaster Pete Thomas said yesterday that salvagers managed to get a cradle under the boat on Saturday, take it off the rocks and put it on the beach. Efforts would be made this week to repair the catamaran to a standard where it can be towed to Ōpua for further repairs.

On Friday, Aurora, an 11-metre launch, sank near Houhora Harbour, and an urgent salvage operation was initiated due to it being a potential navigation hazard given the vessel’s proximity to a wharf, Thomas said.

A dive team reached the spot about 2am on Saturday and started the salvage operation at first light, bring the vessel up at about 7.45pm. It would be up to the insurers to decide if it could be fully repaired or would have to be written off.

Thomas said a small classic yacht also sank close to Pine Island, near Ōpua, on Friday. He said staff had placed a warning buoy at the site to warn other boaties of the hazard, and efforts were being made by the owner’s friends this week to bring it up.

Thomas said if they were not successful, Northland Regional Council may have to look at a salvage operation.

At edition time yesterday, SH1 at Mangamuka Gorge remained closed between Kitchen Rd and Makene Rd, but SH10 was fully open, allowing access to Kaitaia.

However, Waka Kotahi is urging drivers in Northland to show patience and use caution on the region’s roads in the days ahead, with safety the top priority during the current emergency response phase to extensive flooding in the region.

”This is a major weather event, and the damage we are seeing in Northland from the heavy rain and strong wind is very significant,” Waka Kotahi said.

”Until the floodwaters recede, we remain in emergency response mode, with the top priority [being] ensuring the safety of road users. We need the rain to stop and the flooding to recede before we can do full damage assessments in many areas, and until those assessments have been completed, it’s too early to say how long the damage sustained will take to repair.”

Waka Kotahi is concerned that some people are ignoring clearly marked closures and choosing to drive on closed roads in dangerous conditions.

”Safety is our top priority in an emergency response, and we’ve closed these roads for a very good reason – in the current conditions they are not safe for the public to use. When people choose to drive on these closed highways, they not only put their own safety at risk – they make it more difficult for our contractors to do their vital work of assessing damage and beginning the huge job of planning repairs.”

The wettest place in the 48 hours to 3pm Friday was Kerikeri, with a whopping 213 millimetres of rain, more in that period than the town’s average of 174mm for the entire month.

During the same period, Whangaroa recorded 201mm, Kaitaia 150mm, Kaikohe 122mm and Whangārei just 36mm.

The deluge flooded roads, triggered slips, sank boats, and sparked rescues from cars and homes. Some residents of Kaitaia’s Allen Bell Drive opted to leave their homes on Thursday night as the Awanui River threatened to burst its banks, but a formal evacuation was not required.

In another incident, a 75-year-old woman was plucked from her home on SH1 south of Kaitaia about 2pm on Thursday by volunteers using IRB boats, usually deployed in the Ahipara surf.