Small Northland communities got the worst of the weekend's flooding, but more is to come

MetService has issued an 18-hour heavy rain watch for Northland from 6pm - and more rain's expected later in the week.

Whangarei Mayor Ken Couper says slips cut off campers at a DOC site in Puriri Bay - and flooding was very localised.

Couper says for some communities the damage was worse than Cyclone Gabrielle, but it hasn't been too bad for the rest of the district.

Heavy rain on State Highway 2 also extensively damaged Waioweka Gorge - between Opotiki and Gisborne - which'll be closed for several weeks.