A cold August with severe weather to start

A cold August with severe weather to start

"A colder than usual August is expected for all regions of the country.While this is likely good news for skiers, it will mean larger power bills for many of us," said MetService Meteorologist Georgina Griffiths. "The month starts off relatively mild, but a change to a mean-tempered southerly and well below average temperatures is signalled for the weekend. Temperatures for the rest of August also look on the cool side, overall."

Below average air and sea temperatures in the New Zealand region are common in late winter and spring during El Nino periods. The seas around our coastline are currently colder than usual, particularly off the east coast where water temperatures are around 1C below normal.

August kick-starts with severe weather in the mix. "This week looks highly unsettled, with heavy rain in the forecast for western and northern parts of the country, and wind for many eastern areas," warned Griffiths. "As always, we urge people to keep up to date with the latest MetService forecasts and warnings." The remainder of the month is expected to yield more typical weather patterns for the time of year.

The latest Rural Outlook can be found at www.metservice.com/rural/monthly-outlook. And keep up to date with the latest forecasts and any watches/warnings at 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 on Twitter and at blog.metservice.com

ENDS

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