Floods and evacuations are being reported on Waihi Beach, and the Western Bay of Plenty District Council says they are activating their local community response team to help assess the situation and get in touch with those affected.

"The weather may have passed but the impact hasn't. Again, we have people on the ground and others on their way to help assess things and get in touch with anyone affected," says a Western Bay of Plenty District Council spokesperson.

"Unfortunately, our phone lines have been down since 2pm but luckily they're being diverted to our mates at Tauranga City Council - we know, not ideal, but we're working on getting them up ASAP."

Fire and Emergency says the evacuations are underway where the northern end of the beachside town has flooded.

Shift manager Ryan Geen says they had responded to 10 callouts to flooding and assisted with multiple evacuations.

Five fire engines were there, all volunteer brigades, including a crew from Katikati, he says.

The first callout came in about 2pm and the water was subsiding, Geen says.

Western Bay of Plenty ward councillor Allan Sole says it flooded rapidly.

Holiday baches have been inundated and some units for older residents were evacuated, he said.

Western Bay of Plenty District Council's Civil Defence duty manager Peter Watson says residents in 11 units for the elderly were safe and sheltering at the local RSA.

Waihi Beach community board chair Ross Goudie said water was flowing over stormwater ponds, across a main road in the northern part of the settlement and into a low-lying area.

He says there were a lot of houses in that area and the area's stormwater infrastructure could not keep up with major flooding, Goudie said.

Police says the road near Te Poi was likely to remain shut for several hours.

An alternative route is available.

A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for much of Waikato, Western Bay of Plenty and Tauranga.

The warning says the storms were expected to be accompanied by "very heavy rain" that could cause surface of flash flooding, and make driving conditions dangerous.

The storms were moving southeast from offshore Matakana Island, and expected near Te Puke and Papamoa after 3pm, and near Rotoehu and Pongakawa Valley before 4pm.

Heavy rain and strong wind had been expected in Northland and Auckland today, but downpours in those areas were not as severe as forecast and warnings were lifted before the afternoon.

The Western Bay of Plenty District Council says this is what they know as of 4.14pm:

• Eleven of our 19 elder housing units have flooded and evacuation needed.Most of the tenants have evacuated to the Waihī Beach RSA, with the remainder making their own way to stay with family and friends.
• This is a developing situation, and we are working on confirming who has evacuated where in relation to our elder housing.
• We are also checking other places around Waihī Beach that are known to experience flooding. We have had reports of the Waihī Beach Surf Lifesaving Club also flooding.

- Additional reporting by RNZ.