Severe winds hitting velocities of up to 155km/h (96mph) have resulted in nearly 90,000 households experiencing outages and led agencies to call off more than 100 air travel services, as reported by domestic outlets.
These gusts are influencing the complete South Island and southern parts of the northern region, per the country's meteorological service.
New Zealand authorities have announced rare severe gust advisories - the top caution category - in core zones including Wellington and Canterbury.
People have been advised to stay indoors, stay off roads, and make arrangements for more power and communication outages.
Broad Destruction and Crisis Response
This outage appears to be affecting homes mainly in the South Island, while agencies report that power was being gradually reinstated.
Domestic outlets have stated that in various locations roofs have been ripped off houses, whereas power lines and trees have been knocked down by the gusts.
Across Wellington, a person was lost his life after being struck by a falling limb at a popular trail walking spot on earlier this week.
Also in the capital, a female was swept into moving cars on a thoroughfare by a intensive burst, in a incident that was filmed in a viral dashcam video.
Air travel entering and leaving the city have been suspended as a result of the gusts, and various routes and public facilities are also closed.
Simultaneously authorities in Canterbury have announced a state of emergency, to facilitate disaster response efforts.
Work Stoppages Amid Harsh Weather
These intense gusts on today coincide with many of teachers, doctors and other public workers are engaged in what has been described as a "major walkout", demanding better pay and working conditions.
However the intense climate has compelled them to alter various scheduled activities, with various open-air gatherings moved indoors or cancelled.
Similar gusts are also sweeping Australia, bringing a heatwave to the nation's interior regions.
Officials have issued flame prohibitions for concern about wildfires.
