Armed police at address on Auckland's North Shore following earlier firearms incident

Police have left a house on the North Shore and a cordon has been lifted, as the investigation into an firearms incident in west Auckland continues.

Half of Lancaster Road on Beach Haven was blocked by more than 10 police vehicles and one house was cordoned off for most of the afternoon.

Residents say they had to leave their homes after hearing the police over a megaphone asking them to evacuate the area.

They were allowed to return shortly before 5pm.

A Lancaster Road resident said police call outs were not uncommon in the area, and he was not surprised by today's event.

"It's a lot of gang activity, but in this street alone no, we average about six, as I said maybe about four or five times a year up this street, we've been here two years."

Police said they were at an address in Beach Haven as part of their inquiries into the earlier firearms incident in Huapai, north-west of the city, which put two kindergartens into lockdown.

Police said they believed the firearms incident in Huapai was isolated and happened between parties known to each other.

"Staff at ... Lancaster Road are armed given the nature of the earlier incident and are being supported by the Armed Offenders Squad," police said in a statement.

"Inquiries remain ongoing at this stage."

Several schools went into lockdown following reports of gunfire this morning, including Beach Haven Primary, Birkdale Intermediate, Verran Primary, Birkdale North, and Chelsea Primary.

Area Commander for Waitematā North Inspector Matt Laurenson said these lockdowns had now been lifted, following police enquiries.