Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Local Govt | National News Video | Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Search

 

A Cooler Drier Start to the Week Gives Way to Rain

MetService News Release
11 February 2018

A Cooler Drier Start to the Week Gives Way to a Weekend of Rain

With the country under a humid blanket of cloud and rain it’s hard to believe the week started off relatively cool when a series of weak cold fronts moved north over the South Island and lower North Island during Monday and Tuesday.

“A reprieve from the above average temperatures of January continued for those south of the central plateau during the first half of the week due to cooler and drier air lingering after a strong southerly change from the previous week,” commented April Clark MetService meteorologist.

Air continued to dry out during Monday and Tuesday, as a couple of weaker cold fronts affected the southern parts of the country.

“Even the upper North Island saw a brief reprieve from muggy and showery conditions as another front moved off the area late Tuesday. This was followed by a broad ridge of high pressure, bringing settled conditions for the entire country” Clark said.

However, from Thursday onwards the country slowly became engulfed in a rain-bearing subtropical air mass.

“Rain with this current system started over Northland on Friday and has been on and off since,” Clark said. “This system will not spare any part of the country, though some regions in the west will see much higher rainfall accumulations that those elsewhere” she added.

Heavy rain watches and warnings have been in place for much of the North Island and upper South Island during the weekend with over 150mm of rain falling over the western ranges of Nelson in the 24 hours leading up to midday Sunday. A Severe Thunderstorm Watch was issued on Sunday with localised downpours of up to 40mm an hour possible for western areas of the North Island, northwest Nelson and Buller. People heading out are recommended to keep up to date with the forecast and road conditions as heavy or persistent rain could bring flooding, poor visibility and slips to susceptible areas.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

The rain, though set to continue, is expected to become confined to the east on Monday with Great Barrier Island, the Coromandel Peninsula, eastern parts of Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Taupo and Tongariro National Park the only regions holding onto a Heavy Rain Watch by the start of next week.

Meanwhile, well to the north, Tropical Cyclone Gita was named late Friday night and has since affected Samoa before strengthening to its current CAT 3 status near Niue as it travelled south. Gita is expected to curve west towards Tonga during Monday but is set to remain in the tropics for the next few days. Until Gita moves south of 25S Fiji is the official Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre forecasting for Gita and will issue nay warnings regarding the Tropical Cyclone on their website http://info.metraweather.com/e/60812/2018-02-10/fngt19/666730290

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines



Gordon Campbell: On Dune 2, And Images Of Islam


Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture tends to be hostile to Islam when we’re sitting in the dark, with popcorn.
Any number of movie examples come to mind, beginning with Rudolf Valentino’s role (over a century ago) as the romantic Arab hero in The Sheik...
More


 
 


Government: One-stop Shop Major Projects On The Fast Track

The Coalition Government’s new one-stop-shop fast track consenting regime for regional and national projects of significance will cut red tape and make it easier for New Zealand to build the infrastructure and major projects needed to get the country moving again... More

ALSO:


Government: GPS 2024: Over $20 Billion To Get Transport Back On Track
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has released the draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport, outlining the Coalition Government’s plan to build and maintain a transport system that enables people to get to where they need to go quickly and safely... More

ALSO:

Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.