There has been scant information about the state of rural Tairawhiti - and the many small communities and farms inland from Gisborne and Wairoa.
Local Federated Farmers board member Sandra Faulkner is working with Civil Defence to get helicopters in beyond the broken bridges and washed out roads to check on farmers.
Flooding seen from the air just outside of Te Karaka, near Gisborne. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon
