A changeable week of weather ahead

A changeable week of weather ahead

Many parts of New Zealand experienced severe weather over the weekend, with strong winds, heavy rain, large swells, and low snowfall for parts of the country. Rimutaka Hill received gusts up to 154 km/h, and Cape Turnagain received a gust as high as 195 km/h. Cropp River, inland from Hokitika, received 260 mm of rainfall throughout the weekend, and parts of Southland and Otago received snowfall to low levels on Sunday morning. Another mixed bag of weather is expected for the week ahead.

“The weather is looking very changeable this week; it is one of those weeks where you need to keep an eye on the radar and the forecast, as the weather is likely to change from day to day, and from region to region,” said MetService Meteorologist Claire Flynn.

“A westerly flow will bring rain or showers at times to western and southern areas. For those in the east it will be drier,” Flynn explained, “although Gisborne and Hawkes Bay will see some rain on Tuesday as a low briefly scoots across the North Island.” Those in the east of the South Island may see some scattered rain at times during the week as a few fronts move up the country. Winds will be strong and gusty at times too.

While temperatures have recently dropped down a gear over New Zealand, a few fronts moving up the country this week are expected to bring further wintry temperatures. The southern South Island in particular is looking quite cold. Snowfall is currently predicted to fall above 400 – 500 metres there on Thursday and early Friday, though the snow level may lower further as we go into the weekend. In fact, temperatures over the country are likely to continue below average, overall, through the next few weeks, meaning those farmers still busy with lambing and calving will need to keep an eye on the temperatures and wind-chill.

Official Severe Weather Watches and Warnings are reviewed and re-issued by MetService at least every twelve hours, and more often if necessary. To get the most up to date information on severe weather around the country, or any other forecasts, see metservice.com or on mobile devices at m.metservice.com. You can also follow our updates on MetService TV, at MetService New Zealand on Facebook, @metservice and @MetServiceWARN on Twitter and at blog.metservice.com

ENDS

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