Covering period of Monday 16th - Thursday 19th May
The unsettled weather which started over New Zealand this weekend is set to persist into this week. MetService is
forecasting a series of fronts will move over the country this week with less than a day’s break from either strong
winds or rain for many.
MetService meteorologist April Clark states: “The westerly flow bringing in humid air, means any fronts moving over the
country this week will be ripe for rain, and this pattern will dominate through to Friday.”
Each front will bring a period of rain to regions exposed to the west, with lesser amounts in the east. Winds are also
expected to pick up with the passage of each front, especially over the high country with Wellington’s break from gale
force winds set to be broken on Thursday when an active front moves up from the South Island.
“The humid air not only brings rain, but also unusually warm overnight temperatures to Aotearoa, especially for the
upper North Island. Warmer ambient temperatures in conjunction with cloudy skies mean the forecast overnight
temperatures for the Bay of Plenty, Auckland and Northland regions on Tuesday are as much as 8C above their May average”
Clark adds.
“17°C overnight for Auckland on Tuesday is almost bang on the average daily high temperature for May, and is a marked
change from the low single digits of last week.”
An active front is expected to move over the country on Thursday, marking the start of a gradual shift to
southwesterlies and cooler temperatures. Eastern regions of the South Island will likely see the sharpest drop in
temperatures from the week’s start to end, with single digit maximum temperatures showing up for Southland and Otago on
Friday.
Unsettled weather means changeable weather so it becomes even more important to keep up with the details of the latest
Severe Weather Warnings and your local forecast as the weather you wake up to each morning is unlikely to be the same by
afternoon.