FILE PHOTO: A view shows high tides rising due to Cyclone Gabrielle in Arkles Bay, Auckland, New Zealand, February 13, 2023, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. John Longson/Twitter @JohnLongson/via REUTERS.
SYDNEY 鈥� The death toll from Cyclone Gabrielle in New Zealand climbed to 11 on Sunday as thousands of people remained missing a week after the storm struck the country鈥檚 North Island.
The cyclone hit the North Island鈥檚 uppermost region on February 12 and tracked down the east coast, inflicting widespread devastation. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has called Gabrielle New Zealand鈥檚 biggest natural disaster this century.
On Sunday, police said two more people had died in the hard-hit Hawke鈥檚 Bay area in circumstances related to the cyclone, raising the death toll to 11.
Some 5,608 people remained uncontactable across the country, while 1,196 had registered they were safe, police said.
Authorities have previously said they have grave fears for a small number, around 10, of those still missing.
Recovery efforts continued, with teams from Auckland Council carrying out rapid building assessments on damaged homes in the coastal areas of Muriwai and Piha, about 60 km (40 miles) west of the nation鈥檚 largest city Auckland.
READ: Cyclone in New Zealand leaves 7 dead, trail of chaos
Emergency authorities and military on Saturday dropped critical supplies via helicopter to communities stranded since the cyclone, which washed away farms, bridges and livestock and inundated homes.
Around 62,000 households were without power nationwide on Saturday. Of those, almost 40,000 were in Hawke鈥檚 Bay, out of a population of about 170,000.
Prime Minister Hipkins has said the crisis response is 鈥渟till underway鈥� and that people across the North Island are 鈥渨orking around the clock.鈥�
Police have sent an extra 100 officers to Hawke鈥檚 Bay and nearby Tairawhiti, including to isolated areas, and the New Zealand Herald reported roadblocks around a rural Hawke鈥檚 Bay village to deter looters.
鈥淭argeting people in a crisis is abhorrent and we鈥檙e not tolerating it,鈥� police Superintendent Jeanette Park said.