July 25, 2008

Media Release (For Immediate Release)

Waitakere On Stand-by

Emergency Management (Civil Defence) staff in Waitakere City are on stand-by.

That comes with news that a major storm is due to hit the region over the weekend (see weather notification from the Met Service below).

Waitakere’s Civil Defence Manager, Bill Morley, says his staff and a specially trained volunteer rescue team are ready to swing into action if needed.

“Some of our low lying areas are prone to flooding and slips are always a possibility, particularly round the Waitakere Ranges,” says Mr Morley. “So we are taking sensible precautions. We don’t want to panic anybody, but we have to prepare for the worst.”

Mr Morley is urging people to heed advice from his organisation and others, such as police.

“If the weather hits us as is predicted people should only go outdoors if they absolutely have to,” he says.

“Driving will be treacherous and coastal areas such as Piha and Karekare can expect huge seas. People just have to use their common-sense and stay put instead of venturing out.”

ENDS

SEVERE WEATHER WARNING.
ISSUED BY MetService AT 11:28 am 25-Jul-2008

MAJOR STORM EXPECTED TO AFFECT MUCH OF THE NORTH ISLAND THIS WEEKEND A low is crossing the north Tasman Sea today and is expected to deepen rapidly as it approaches northern New Zealand Saturday morning.
The unusually intense low is forecast to move over Cape Reinga late Saturday afternoon then track southeastwards to lie near the Coromandel Peninsula at midnight and near East Cape midday Sunday. A front ahead of the low is expected to bring widespread rain to the North Island by the end of Saturday and gales are likely to affect most parts of the North Island. The heaviest rain should be in Northland,northern Auckland, the Coromandel Peninsula, Gisborne and Hawkes Bay ranges and these areas streams and rivers could rise quickly along with some surface flooding.
East to southeast gales may affect many parts of the North Island with strongest winds gusting to around 120 km/h in parts of Northland, Auckland,Coromandel Peninsula, Waikato, eastern Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, the central North Island,Manawatu and Wellington.MetService advises the public that winds of this strength have the potential to cause damage and make driving hazardous.Boaties are advised to make moorings secure as high winds and large waves are likely about northern and eastern coasts of the North Island.

FOR THE LATEST WEATHER AND FORECAST CHARTS PLEASE GO TO http://metservice.com/default/index.php?alias=mapsandobservations

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