A period of intense rain for the north

A period of intense rain for the north

A front that is currently making its way onto the west of the South Island is expected to move onto the North Island tomorrow (Thursday). Severe Weather Watches associated with this front have been issued for several areas including Northland, Auckland, Coromandel Peninsula and Bay of Plenty.

Of particular concern is the effect that this front could have on the Auckland region, as well as Coromandel. While widespread heavy rain is not expected, there is a risk that localised heavy falls could bring rainfall rates of around 20 mm per hour. Over Auckland, the heaviest falls are expected to occur between the hours of 3pm and 6pm. It is possible that this burst of rain could result in surface flooding on some roads, impacting the evening commute.

Since these heavy falls occur over a relatively short time period, total rainfall amounts may or may not be enough to reach the official short-duration Severe Weather Warning criteria of 50mm of rain within 6 hours. However, this rainfall still has the potential to cause disruption and make driving conditions hazardous.

In Coromandel, the heaviest falls are likely to occur a little later,between 5pm and 9pm.

In addition, the front crossing the upper North Island may be accompanied by a developing low, resulting in a period of strong southwesterly winds following the main rain band. Again, these winds may not be strong enough to meet official Severe Weather Warning criteria, but they may still reach gale force in exposed places, with the strongest winds expected overnight.

As always, you can keep up to date with the latest forecasts and any watches/warnings at metservice.com or on mobile devices atm.metservice.com. You can also follow our updates on MetService TV, at MetService New Zealand on Facebook, @metservice on Twitter and atblog.metservice.com

ENDS

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