The East Cape recorded 16mm of rain overnight, and heavier rain is expected throughout the day.
Tai Rāwhiti about and north of Tolaga Bay could get up to 175mm of rain.
Meanwhile, parts of Westland recorded up to 50mm of rain overnight.
However, MetService said the front was moving southwards and would leave Westland by around midday.
A local state of emergency was declared in Westland on Friday, before being lifted on Saturday morning.
Westland District Council mayor Helen Lash said the region had fared relatively well, but local leaders were not taking any chances.
She told Morning Report that there had been a severe thunderstorm overnight but the front had already passed through. "It looks like we're at the tail end now."
If the predicted intense rain was in the back hills, that might have created problems, she said, but "at this stage it's more coastal".
Another rain event is predicted for the coming weekend, and Lash said she would be talking with communities further south on the West Coast and keeping an eye on water saturation points.
"They're the ones who were most impacted by the weather events we've just had."
NZTA Waka Kotahi closed State Highway 6 between Hokitika and Haast overnight on Friday during the state of emergency. Lash said they would prefer that roads were not closed during peak tourism season, but everyone understood that security and safety were the primary concern.
The community had been "very much behind" the decision to close the road and declare a local state of emergency because they used the roads themselves and appreciated the repercussions of not doing so. "We're going to be monitoring and see how this plays out."
