Covering period of Monday 14th - Thursday 17th May

While the South Island is experiencing the interesting weather today, our focus shifts to the North Island as we head into the week.

A punchy cold front with a period of heavy rain is moving up the South Island today, lowering snow to 900 metres throughout the day. For those travelling in the area, keep an eye on the passes, in particular Lindis Pass is expected to see a sprinkling of snow tonight.

MetService Meteorologist Katie Hillyer says, “It’s a real cold snap, with Tuesdays maximums in the east coast of the South Island about 10 degrees less than Mondays.”

The rain stalls and weakens over the central South Island on Tuesday as northeasterlies build over the country ahead of a subtropical low pressure system from the North.

From Tuesday morning, northeast winds and rain begin to build over the upper North Island ahead of a subtropical low. From Wednesday, Northland, Auckland and Coromandel are under a Strong Wind Watch in gale northeasterlies, and a Heavy Rain Watch. There is a high confidence of these Watches being upgraded to Orange Warnings closer to the time. Generally, the North Island can expect the worst weather on Thursday, with a high confidence of Heavy Rain and Strong Wind Warnings being issued for western Bay of Plenty as well.

With plenty of travellers on the road over the Easter Break, people should be extra cautious and keep a close eye on the forecast, particularly with the exodus from Auckland lining up with the most significant weather.

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Hillyer says, “This windy system is long-lived, with periods of heavy rain, so accumulations are expected to be impressive. Try to take some time before the action starts to clear those gutters and drains and any surrounding leaves that could cause any blockages. With very few systems with this magnitude of northeast winds in the last year, trees could be particularly susceptible to damage, so trimming back branches and securing any loose objects is also a good idea.”

Sticky uncomfortable nights are also on the table as temperatures and the humidity rise, with overnight temperatures in the high teens in the upper North Island.

While the South Island can also expect intermittent wet weather over the next week, it’s the top of the Island, particularly Nelson and Tasman, that are set to cop some heavy rain from Thursday, continuing into the weekend.

While we’ll see a few breaks in the rain, it is a long-lived system, with windy and rainy conditions to continue over the country until next week.

Please keep up to date with the most current information from MetService at MetService - Te Ratonga Tirorangi

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