Changeable weather continues to pack punches

11 April 2018

Changeable weather continues to pack punches

Autumn means fast moving weather systems, with a sprinkling of snow, gales, heavy rain and thunderstorms. A series of fronts continue to affect New Zealand, with another fast-moving system racing up the country on Thursday, followed by a brief ridge before the next front arrives on Sunday. MetService is not expecting a repeat of the conditions experienced in Auckland and Taranaki yesterday, but elements of severe weather will still affect many parts of New Zealand for the coming days.

“It is imperative to be prepared in New Zealand, especially during periods of highly changeable weather,” explained meteorologist Tom Adams. “MetService is the official producer of Severe Weather Warnings and Watches in New Zealand, and is the place to go to find out about the weather in the days before it occurs.”

Thursday’s front will bring thunderstorms back to Auckland and Northland in the evening, and heavy rain and strong winds gusts will accompany these. Behind the front strong southerlies pick up again, which will be strong and gusty through Auckland. The southerly winds will maintain the cooler temperatures, which persist through to Sunday when warmer air sweeps over New Zealand again. During these cooler nights, there are also many places that will see frost, especially in sheltered inland locations.

Tonight will be the coldest night of the year so far for many places

The weekend is also looking unsettled, with a chance of more thunderstorms, gusty winds and showery rain. There will be fine spells too as a short-lived ridge moves over the country, but during clear nights watch out for frost and ice on the roads.

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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