On the hard-hit west coast beaches in Auckland, communities were still dealing with the threat of land slips and the realities of red-stickered homes.
In Piha, some people were still calling the surf club home - nearly a week on from the cyclone.
Oliver Cashmore had been red stickered twice in two weeks, his flat in Laingholm in the Waitākere Ranges was hit by Auckland's flooding last month.
Then he went to stay with his grandparents in Piha.
Oliver Cashmore is calling the Piha Surf Club home following the cyclone. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
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"I thought I was going to die," he said.
As water began to pool around their property on Garden Road on the night of 13 February, they went to stay in a property above them on higher ground.
Climbing the steep slippery steps with his injured grandfather they carried what they could.
A large slip in Piha. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
They went to bed, only to be woken by thudding on the windows as debris came crashing into the house.
"We hear a loud crash of glass ... so we go downstairs and there's another bedroom there what had happened was the glass had smashed and ... [a] whole tree and all this dirt just kept filling up to the point where we couldn't actually open the door anymore."
Then cracks appeared in the back wall and the thudding got louder.
"I could sort of feel the floor under me giving way and we actually looked up because, you know, they've got these big support sort of beams on the roof ... they're starting to twist."
At that point, they knew they needed to flee; Cashmore said it was just in time.
"Maybe 30 seconds, maybe a minute later, the house just slid right down, landed on top of the house that was lower down so there's a house on a house."
Drenched and covered in mud, they were finally rescued later that night, driven to safety at the local RSA.
Clothing is available for those who need it in Piha. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
"It was just the most miraculous relief I've ever felt in my life."
He has been at the community hub at the local surf club ever since. His grandparents were staying with friends.
The surf club has been a safe haven for residents with food, clothing, toiletries and accommodation on offer.
"There's a lot of things that you forget about when you have to walk out of your house in your PJs," Club Custodian Paul Newham said.
"When I come and get you on a boat and you're soaking wet, you've got nothing, even the clothes that you're in are not necessarily of use."
He said it had only been possible by the community rallying together.
Piha remains closed following the cyclone. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
Finally handing over to Auckland Emergency Management on Sunday, he was thankful but disappointed it had taken so long.
"It's a double-edged sword. We know that there are parts of the country that are way worse off than we are," Newham said.
"We've lost no lives, we've had no major injuries, but I guess we're victims of our own success because we've got everything up and running and we've got people out of their houses."
They have only just regained power and have been relying on a generator to provide cooking facilities to cater for up to 300 people.
But volunteer Angela Smith said getting their hands on enough ingredients had been the biggest challenge.
"We've just been putting posts out on the community Facebook pages and people are bringing in what's required, but we're trying to get access to food to keep going but it's ... tricky."
All of it was worth it though to help those who desperately needed it, Smith said.
The weather had improved and blue sky hung over Piha on Monday, but the community and officials were urging people to stay away while the community regrouped and rebuilt their lives.