Severe gales reaching speeds of up to 155km/h (96mph) have resulted in around 90,000 homes experiencing outages and led agencies to halt over 100 air travel services, as reported by regional news sources.
The winds are impacting the complete southern region and lower areas of the North Island, per the national weather agency.
New Zealand authorities have issued infrequent red wind warnings - the highest alert level - in central regions including these major districts.
People have been encouraged to avoid going outside, refrain from journeys, and make arrangements for additional power and communication outages.
Broad Destruction and Emergency Response
This outage appears to be affecting homes mostly in the South Island, though authorities state that the electricity supply was being slowly brought back.
Local media have stated that in various locations structures have suffered roof damage, while power lines and trees have been toppled by the winds.
Across Wellington, a man was fatally injured after being struck by a wooden fragment at a frequent walking route on earlier this week.
Also in the capital, a female was blown onto approaching vehicles on a road by a strong gust of wind, in a event that was filmed in a widely shared car camera footage.
Flights in and out of the metropolis have been halted as a result of the gusts, while some roads and libraries are not operating.
At the same time local leaders have issued a crisis declaration, to facilitate disaster response efforts.
Labor Protests Amid Severe Conditions
The powerful gales on this day occur while tens of thousands of teachers, doctors and other public workers are engaged in what has been described as a "significant labor action", demanding higher wages and enhanced employment terms.
Yet the severe conditions has pressured them to alter some of their plans, with several external protests relocated inside or called off.
Like conditions are affecting the nearby nation, bringing a high-temperature event to the country's outback.
Agencies have issued flame prohibitions for fear of bushfires.
