Searchers are making the most of a reprieve in the weather today to scale up their attempts to find a missing Waikato father Thomas Phillips and his three young children.

The family's abandoned ute was found in the surf at Kiritehere Beach in the King country on Sunday and police were alerted on Monday.

But the search window could be brief, with MetService issuing severe weather warnings and watches for heavy rain and strong winds today.

RNZ's reporter at the scene Robin Martin speaks to Māni Dunlop.