Worst of New Zealand's wild weather passes, cleanup begins

WELLINGTON (Reuters) -The majority of severe weather warnings across New Zealand have now been lifted, according to New Zealand government weather forecaster Metservice on Friday.

New Zealand’s capital city of Wellington was hit by the strongest winds in more than a decade on Thursday, closing schools and offices and cancelling flights. Farther south, in the Canterbury region, in the middle of the South Island, heavy rains caused flooding and landslides, forcing a few people to evacuate.

Both Christchurch City and Selwyn District remain in states of emergency as there was still surface flooding and road closures. However, Selwyn District Council said in a Facebook post that the worst of the weather was over.

Wellington International Airport had reopened, although local news organization Stuff reported that not all planes had managed to land. Images on local news sites showed rocks and debris littering the road along the city’s south coast and waves continuing to break over the sea walls.

Wellington Region Emergency Management Office said on a post on Facebook that it continued to advise people not to travel unless necessary.

(Reporting by Lucy Craymer in WellingtonEditing by Matthew Lewis)

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