The low departs, but it stays unsettled

22, January, 2017

The deep low pressure system crossing the country this weekend has brought another round of rain and wind for many parts of New Zealand.

Auckland felt the effects last evening with northeast gales gusting to 100km/hr in many spots and peaking at 120km/hr on Tiritiri Matangi Island.

“It has been quite sometime since northeasterlies have been this strong in Auckland after weeks of westerlies, so some trees with all their new growth could not cope” said Forecaster Cameron Coutts

Wind gusts around 100km/hr also occurred in Taranaki and exposed eastern coasts of both islands, and this morning have reached 140km/hr about the higher parts of Wellington. Later today southwesterlies gusting 120km/hr are expected to develop along the eastern coast of the South Island.

The upside of the current spell of nasty weather is that drier parts of Northland, Auckland and Coromandel Peninsula received useful amounts of rain last night, with 10 to 30mm for most, but a few places recorded 60-80mm.

“People on tank water should have had a bit of a top up” said Coutts.

The low is now moving quickly away to the southeast with warnings and watches expected to be over by late Monday morning. However, it remains unsettled through the working week and into February, with more fronts on the way. However, like most of the summer so far the upper North Island remains the most settled.

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