The death toll from Cyclone Gabrielle in New Zealand rose to eight on Friday, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said and he warned that the number was expected to increase as emergency crews make contact with hundreds of cut-off communities.
The cyclone, which hit New Zealand on the uppermost region of the North Island on Sunday before making its way down the east coast, cut off towns, washed away farms, bridges and livestock and inundated homes, stranding people on rooftops.
"We do need to brace ourselves for the fact that there are likely be more fatalities from this across the country. And the true extent of that, we won't know for a while," Hipkins said. Just over 4,500 people as of Friday afternoon were registered with the police as being out of touch with friends or family since the cyclone hit. Police believe most of them simply don't have access to communication networks.
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