A Muriwai homeowner is in insurance limbo after cliffs crashed down either side of her house during the cyclone - leaving her property red stickered.

Even though the house itself is untouched, it's too dangerous to live in. Jacqui Schubert was forced to flee her home in the west Auckland beach settlement, grabbing just a few clothes and bags of dog food on the way out.

It's the same landslip that trapped and killed two fighters just a few doors down.

Two weeks on her house is still cordoned off due to unstable land, and any decision on its future could be months away.

But right now Jacqui told me she's unable to access insurance payments or other financial assistance.

The government is crowdsourcing the cyclone recovery bill. It has launched an international fundraising effort, modelled on the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal - which raised almost $100 million.

A separate special Lotto draw will also be held on March 18 with all proceeds going to affected communities.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has urged New Zealanders to get behind the effort.

He defended asking people to chip in when the cost-of-living is so high.

Some civil defence centres in Auckland are closing their doors, despite hundreds of people still without housing.

So far, MBIE has housed around 500 households, and another 500 are on its temporary accomodation waitlist - but they're expecting thousands more to need assistance.

Reporter Louise Ternouth and camera operator Nick Monro have the story.

In Hawke's Bay orchardists working to clear silt from their properties have gone from fighting the dust to fighting the mud, with rain now hampering clean-up efforts.

For many the work is urgent, they've only got a few weeks to save thousands of trees and vines from suffocating in silt.

Rural reporter, Maja Burry, has more.

Gerard Bellam from the MetService explains what is happening with the thunderstorms over Auckland.

Let's move north now where a slow thunderstorm has brought torrential rain over Mangawhai, Wellsford and Te Arai north of Auckland.

Mike Howard is a councillor for Kaiwaka-Mangawhai. He's been doing a bit of a drive around but he's just got home and joins Lisa Owen with the latest information.

A new emergency alert has been sent to people's phones in the north and west of Auckland, warning of landslides and flash flooding brought on by "high intensity localised downpours".

It also warns people need to be ready to evacuate if necessary.

Joining us now live is Auckland's Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson.

Emergency call centre staff who were on the phone to people clinging to roof tops in fear of their lives during Cyclone Gabrielle are still traumatsied by what they heard.

In the 12 hours where Gabrielle unleashed her worst on the upper North Island, the 111 call centre recieved more than five times its usual volume of calls for help.

NZ Professional Firefighters' Union representative, Carlos Dempsey is a 111 call-taker and team leader. He said the callers were desperate.

In a statement to Checkpoint, FENZ national Commander Russell Wood said the weather conditions, the level of flooding, and sometimes their own circumstances, meant people couldn't reach many of those in need on the night.

"The number of calls far exceeded our people's capacity to respond to them all and the conditions prevented our people reaching many of the calls we were able to respond to.

"Helicopters were unable to rescue people in darkness and due to the overnight weather conditions and rescue efforts continued to be hampered during the following day due to high winds.

"Firefighters did an amazing job in the circumstances. There will be an operational review into our response including how we responded to 111 calls, but at the moment our focus is on the immediate response and recovery effort."

Police say there hasn't been a spike in crime in areas hit by Cyclone Gabrielle, but residents living in the hardest-hit areas say they're living in fear of looters.

Down some Hawke's Bay streets groups of locals are manning roadblocks or patrolling to keep their neighborhoods safe in the dark.

Our reporter Jimmy Ellingham went to see them.

The Employment Court's chief judge has made an unprecedented visit to Gloriavale as part of a case brought by six former members who claim they were exploited and treated like slaves.

Christina Inglis spent two hours touring the isolated Christian commune at remote Lake Haupiri, to help her better understand the evidence presented in court.

RNZ reporter Jean Edwards was there and filed this report from Gloriavale.