A localised tornado that struck Mangawhai Village in New Zealand on Jan. 26 caused widespread property damage, triggering a multi-agency emergency response.
The event has raised questions about how prepared the nation’s insurance industry is to manage the growing threat of climate-related disasters.
Kaipara District Council coordinated the emergency response after the tornado damaged over 90 properties. Building inspectors conducted assessments, marking 26 homes as safe and nine as requiring restricted access. Northpower crews worked to restore electricity, though damage to transformers and utility poles delayed full service restoration to some areas.
Emergency responders, including Civil Defence teams and first responders, conducted door-to-door welfare checks in the hardest-hit areas, such as Old Waipu Road and Moir Street.
The council arranged temporary housing for one displaced resident and announced plans to remove debris from affected properties. Residents were encouraged to contact their insurers for assistance with claims.
John Burt, local controller for Kaipara Civil Defence Emergency Management, urged residents to prioritise safety while recovery work was underway.
“People’s safety is our first priority. We understand that people want to clean up and get back to normal life as quickly as possible, but until work is completed we need to treat all wires as live and allow Northpower to secure the area,” he said.
The Mangawhai tornado is the latest in a series of extreme weather events that have tested New Zealand’s insurance market.
While the industry has traditionally focused on earthquake-related risks, recent disasters – including Cyclone Gabrielle and the Auckland Anniversary floods in 2023 – have shifted priorities. Together, these events caused over $4 billion in insured losses, highlighting a growing vulnerability to weather-related hazards.
A review by catastrophe modelling experts Joanna Aldridge of QBE Insurance and Rob Bell of Bell Adapt highlighted the increasing urgency for insurers to address climate risks. The review identified key threats, including:
The report stressed the need for insurers to expand their catastrophe modelling frameworks to account for weather-related hazards. It noted that current models are heavily focused on seismic risks, leaving gaps in the industry’s ability to address the rising frequency of extreme weather events.
Compounding losses from sequential disasters, such as those experienced during prolonged La Niña phases, further complicate the risk landscape. For instance, back-to-back storms and floods in early 2023 underscored the challenges posed by clustered climate events.
