Covering period of Monday 8th – Friday 12th April – MetService is forecasting a significant weather event to unfold over the coming week, which looks set to bring heavy rain and strong winds to many parts of Aotearoa New Zealand. The heavy rain is expected first over the western South Island from Tuesday, then spreads to the eastern South Island midweek, reaching the North Island by the end of the week. This sharp pivot will be a marked change after what has been a relatively calm few weeks.
The weather system moves onto Fiordland early Tuesday morning and becomes slow-moving in Westland on Wednesday and Thursday, delivering a lot of rain to the area. Numerous Watches and Orange Warnings have been issued for Heavy Rain.
MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane elaborates: “The ranges of the Westland District south of Hokitika, which are under an Orange Warning, can expect rainfall amounts of 600 mm to 800 mm between Tuesday and Thursday, with lesser amounts near the coast. This is a significant heavy rain event, and we will be keeping a close eye on developments over the next 24 hours as there is the potential to upgrade to a Red Warning. Rain of this amount may cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly. Surface flooding and slips are also possible and driving conditions may be hazardous.”
Other areas in the South Island are also under Orange Warning or Watch, which may be upgraded in the coming days.
The rain ext
