Adverse weather slower to arrive in the South

MetService News Release
Friday, 19 Sep 2014

Adverse weather slower to arrive in the South

A broad, active and complex trough is rolling across New Zealand duringFriday, bringing rain or showers to most regions exposed to north and westerly flows. This is followed by cold southerlies on Saturday and Sunday. Looking to next week, a slow-moving high gets stuck over the Tasman Sea, maintaining unstable southwesterlies over the country for much of the week.

The arrival of the cold front over the lower South Island will be delayed until later on Saturday. This means any snow showers are likely to be confined to inland parts of Otago and Fiordland during Saturday.

"These active systems keep us on our toes, and sometimes mean we have to adjust forecasts as reality unfolds," said MetService meteorologist Rob Kerr. "In this case, the warm air associated with the low is going to hold the cold at bay for a bit longer than we previously expected. We should see snow showers lowering to 400m during Saturday." said Kerr

Further north the forecast remains largely unchanged, and unpleasant, as rain or showers and strong winds persist for many northern and western areas right through the weekend.

Keep up to date with the latest forecasts and any watches/warnings atmetservice.com or on mobile devices at m.metservice.com. You can also follow our updates on MetService TV, @metservice on Twitter and at blog.metservice.com.

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MetService issues Warnings, Watches and Outlooks for severe weather over New Zealand.
Warnings are about taking action:
* When severe weather is imminent or is occurring
* Issued only when required
* Recommendation: ACT
Watches are about being alert:
* When severe weather is possible, but not sufficiently imminent or certain for a Warning to be issued
* Issued only when required
* Recommendation: BE READY
Outlooks are about looking ahead:
* To provide advance information on possible future Watches and/or Warnings
* Issued routinely once or twice a day
* Recommendation: PLAN
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ENDS

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