A fine weekend, but a heads up on Hola

MetService forecasts improving weather this weekend, meaning plenty of sun around the country, before Cyclone Hola makes its presence felt in parts of the North Island on Monday.

Cold southerlies are currently bringing heavy falls of rain to eastern parts of the North Island, but are set to ease by Saturday as high pressure brings more stable weather over the country. The sun should be shining for the Blackcaps in Christchurch for the One Day International on Saturday, and on the whole, most of New Zealand will enjoy a sunny weekend, but with cooler temperatures than recently.

“Ideal conditions for getting out and about,” said meteorologist Tom Adams, “The upper North Island, in particular, should make the most of it. The weather there takes a turn for the worse next week as Cyclone Hola will bring a short spell of wind, rain and larger swell, with possible severe weather in places.”

“Tropical Cyclone Hola is currently Category 4”, said Tropical Cyclone meteorologist Micky Malivuk, “The system is intensifying and is expected to pass between Vanuatu and New Caledonia on Friday, and it is possible it could grow to a Category 5 cyclone. Current forecast tracks indicate that the cyclone will recurve on Friday and start tracking to the southeast, although the final track will be highly dependent on where and when it recurves.”

Satellite imagery of Tropical Cyclone Hola on Thursday morning.

Although it is too early to be certain about the track of this system as it passes over New Zealand waters, there is a significant probability that it could pass near the upper North Island on Monday. The MetService Tropical Cyclone bench are keeping a close eye on developments 24/7 and will issue Severe Weather Watches and Warnings for any areas which could see severe weather associated with this event, along with updates on social media.

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

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