A front is bringing some heavy rain to already sodden areas of the North Island today, say MetService. Large parts of
Gisborne have already received between 30 and 50mm of rain today and there is an Orange Heavy Rain Warning in place for
the region through tomorrow (Tuesday) morning. There are also Heavy Rain Watches for Coromandel and eastern parts of Bay
of Plenty. Many parts of the North Island may also be subjected to thunderstorms and downpours of rain this afternoon
and until 9pm tonight, and a large Severe Thunderstorm Watch covers a wide area from Northland all the way down to the
Hawke’s Bay ranges.
MetService meteorologist Karl Loots said, “From Tuesday morning we expect this front to weaken and move away from the
country, taking the rain and the thunderstorms with it. After this, we expect some welcome dry weather for the remainder
of the week for the North Island”.
While those in the North have had a very wet summer, the opposite is true for many parts of the South Island.
“A series of fronts will bring some rain to southern and western parts of the South Island in the second half of the
week. This comes on the back of a much drier than usual summer for many in these parts of the country”, explained Loots.The Latest on the Tropics
After Cyclone Gabrielle, many people have been keeping a close eye on the tropics. Tropical Cyclone Judy has just been
named by the Fiji meteorological service this afternoon (Monday). Judy currently sits north of Vanuatu as a category one
system.
There is increasing confidence that Judy will track well to the northeast of New Zealand with minimal impact on the
country’s weather. Climatologically, we are now in the peak of the tropical cyclone season for the Southwest Pacific
with another potential development of a tropical cyclone being monitored. Tropical cyclone tracks are notoriously
complex to forecast, so staying up to date with the latest forecasts is always a good idea.
For the latest forecasts and track updates for Judy, please visit the Fiji Meteorological Service.