New Zealand declares state of emergency after major damage from Cyclone Gabrielle

A state of emergency was declared in New Zealand on Tuesday 14 February as Cyclone Gabrielle battered the country.

Kieran McAnulty, the emergency management minister, said the cyclone “has had major impacts across most of the North Island”.

“This is a significant disaster with a real threat to the lives of New Zealanders,” he told reporters in Wellington.

The state of emergency will apply to Northland, Auckland, Tairawhiti, Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Hawke’s Bay.

It’s the third time in the country’s history that a state of emergency has been declared, McAnulty said.

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