Tens of thousands of households are still without power after gale force winds toppled poles and brought down lines in parts of the country on Thursday.
Lines companies are warning electricity could be out for days, and some Southlanders have been urged to conserve water.
As conditions ease, the clean up is kicking in across the motu after trees were ripped clean from the ground, roofs lifted off, and fences and sheds were sent flying.
In Canterbury, hundreds of people in Kairaki and The Pines near the Waimakariri River, and in Rakaia Huts near the Rakaia River, were asked to evacuate on Thursday night due to the risk of flooding.
MetService said while the weather was settling for now, more rain and gales were forecast on Monday.
Power cuts could continue for days
With the strongest gusts recorded at more than 200kmh, it was far too dangerous for many crews to be out fixing broken poles and lines on Thursday.
It was hoped calmer conditions on Friday would allow them to crack on with repairs, but the damage was widespread and some areas were hard to reach, with poles and lines still blocking roads.
The largest power cuts were in Tararua, Wairarapa, Canterbury, Otago and Southland.
In Otago and Southland, Powernet said tens of thousands of properties were affected.
"Our crews are focused on making damaged infrastructure like downed lines and poles safe, then restoring electricity to lifeline utilities like water supplies and water treatment plants," it said.
"It is possible that some customers may be without power well into the weekend, or longer, as the extent of the damage becomes clear."
Water supplies affected
Power cuts were also impacting drinking and wastewater plants in Southland - which was a particular problem for the townships of Tuatapere, Ohai, Nightcaps and Otautau.
Residents have been asked not to flush, bathe or run taps.
Mayor Rob Scott urged people to conserve water.
"We do have generators across some of our plants, but there's a shortage of generators around the traps at the moment," he said.
"We're doing what we can and we're actively monitoring, but it's just important that people to conserve water where they can."
A Greymouth water treatment plant was struck by lightning on Thursday, leaving the district with critically low water reserves.
People were asked to boil any tap water they did have, while water was brought in from supermarkets in Westport and Hokitika, and a water tanker.
Grey District Council said water began to flow again last night, but the precautionary boil water notice would remain in place over the weekend, and people were still asked to conserve water.
South Island roads still closed
A number of state highways in Canterbury, the West Coast, Otago and Southland were closed overnight, Waka Kotahi said.
Trees and power lines were strewn across roads, and there was flooding in some places.
The closures would be reassessed on Friday morning, and people should check the transport agency's website for the latest updates.
Clean up begins
With the wind and rain abating, many communities would be assessing the damage and beginning to pick up the pieces on Friday.
Invercargill Mayor Tom Campbell said he'd never seen anything like the weather in Southland on Thursday.
Huge numbers of trees had been taken out, he said.
"We are counting the blessings because we've had no reports of any serious injuries up to this point, which is miraculous," he said.
"Property can always be fixed, but so far, it looks as though nobody's been hurt."
Campbell said the clean up had already started with people dragging fallen trees out of the way and cutting them up.
Conditions ease but ramp back up on Labour Day
MetService meteorologist David Miller said the weather would be fairly settled for most of the country on Friday, apart from some brief heavy rain for western parts of the South Island.
The west of both islands, and parts of Otago and Southland would see some showers during the weekend, but it would not be too bad: "It's not a write off over the weekend," he said.
However, there would be a new weather system to watch out for on Labour Day, Miller said.
"There is the possibility of some more northwesterly gales and heavy rain for parts of the country on Monday.
"Western parts of the South Island could be in the firing line for some heavy rain, as well as parts of the North Island, especially central North Island, and those northwesterly gales could be picking up about much of the North Island as well."
