Residents in New Zealand’s largest city of Auckland and the surrounding area are being told to brace for more heavy rain, flooding and gale-force winds as Cyclone Gabrielle nears. 

Gabrielle, is sitting 250 km (155 miles) northwest of New Zealand and was forecast to move close to the east coast over the next 24 hours. “We expect the impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle to get, unfortunately, worse before they get better,” said Rachel Kelleher, Deputy Controller Auckland Emergency Management on Monday. “It’s not the time to be complacent,” she added.