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After a week of flooding, the lower North island region was battered by gales on Saturday with some gusts exceeding hurricane force.
One gust on Mt Kaukau near Wellington was recorded at 182 kilometres an hour.
Emergency services warned people to stay indoors and avoid all travel in the Manawatu, Horowhenua, Kapiti and Wellington on Saturday evening.
The Met Service says the severe gale force northwesterly winds that are belting the lower North Island are at their peak, but are some of the strongest they have seen.
The weather has brought down power lines and trees, temporarily closing roads and tearing off roofs.
Police advised people not to travel over the Rimutaki Hills and Haywards Hill was closed.
A number of other roads were also closed on Saturday, including part of State Highway 58 which was closed by fallen trees, State Highway 3 through the Manawatu Gorge and State Highway 4 between Raetihi and Wanganui due to slips.
State Highway 56 from Opiki to Makerua and from Longburn to State Highway 1 were closed because of flooding.
Telecom said technicians were flying in by helicopter with generators to recharge batteries in cabinets which have lost power supply, to help restore telephone links in the flood-hit Waitotara Valley in South Taranaki, but was also instructing farmers how to restore their own links.
Radio link cabinets connect isolated local telephone lines to the main phone network in areas where it is not practical to run cables.
Flights from Wellington Airport and a Lynx fast ferry crossing were cancelled.
Prime Minister Helen Clark says the government will announce on Monday several measures to help district councils who have borne the brunt of the week's storm.
She spent Saturday afternoon on a flying visit to the Manawatu and Rangitikei talking to people whose homes and properties were severely damaged by floods and slips.
"This could be my parents, this could be my home," she said. "It could be any one of us."
Disposal of dead stock loomed as an important issue once flood waters in the southern half of the North Island receded.
Manawatu-Wanganui Regional Council spokesperson Ewen Robertson says farmers west of Fielding have organised a collection point for dead animals.
He says they will be trucked to a rendering plant in Fielding.
Ewen Robertson says in some cases farmers had to recover stock from trees which were covered by floodwaters.
One farmer says he lost 16 horses.
Meanwhile, the Heinz-Watties processing factory in Hastings was back in full operation after natural gas supplies were restored to commercial and industrial customers in Hawke's Bay and Tararua.
The government has set up a help line for victims of the floods in the lower North Island.
Minister of Social Development and Employment Steve Maharey says it will provide a single point of contact for information on government services. People with questions about housing, income support, health issues, insurance, civil defence, task force green clean up, or other services should call 0800 779 997.
The number will operate daily from 7:00am until 10:00pm. Maharey says the service complements the first one-stop-shop established in the Waitotara hotel for flood victims. He says others will be set up over the next few days.
In Auckland, flood relief facilities have also been established so receive donated goods. They can be contacted on 0-9-360 4777.
