A ridge of high pressure dominated over New Zealand during the working week bringing settled weather for most New Zealanders. “The ridge brought plenty of sun to the first days of July, though the lack of cloud meant temperatures plummeted overnight with many inland places seeing morning frosts” April Clark MetService Meteorologist commented.

The ridge’s reign ended just in time for the weekend as a procession of fronts moved onto the country. Strong northwesterly winds preceding each front meant western regions bore the brunt of the wet weather while eastern regions saw warm but gusty conditions - Christchurch exceeded their average July daytime maximum by 8C to hit 19C on Saturday. “Wellington, currently ‘enjoying’ the benefits of sitting near Cook Strait with no shelter to the west, has seen 131km/h wind gusts and 83mm of rain in northern suburbs so far this weekend” Clark lamented.

“Severe Weather Watches and Warnings are currently in force over a large portion of the country. Heavy rain and strong winds are expected to ease by early Monday morning when an active front currently over the lower South Island moves east and clears Gisborne and the Bay of Plenty” Clark said.

“However, the unsettled weather is forecast to continue into early next week with showery southwest winds bringing cooler temperatures to the country and snow down to 600 meters over the lower South Island” she continued.

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