More extreme weather in New Zealand

In my reckoning this is extreme weather event #6 to hit New Zealand in little over a month.

Kevin Hester and I are planning a You Tube segment discussing this very soon.

NZ set for 'a battering' from storms

Two storm systems are forecast to batter the country over the next two days

Radio NZ,

18 July, 2015

Here comes the rain! Radar loop upto 7.40am. Wind gusts of 100km/h in exposed areas, too. ^RKpic.twitter.com/Xi4dtW3DTk

— MetService (@MetService) July 17, 2015

The first is expected to bring cold winds and snow to low levels in Fiordland, Southland, Canterbury and Marlborough, with very heavy snow possible to 300 metres in Otago.

Polar outbreak brings snow to low from Fiordland to S Marlborough, esp above 300m on Sat. ^RKhttp://t.co/NQBonCMXTZ pic.twitter.com/m00ayelpFb

— MetService (@MetService) July 16, 2015

The second is expected to bring heavy rain and strong winds to most North Island regions and the top of the South tomorrow, with gale warnings for Wellington and eastern Marlborough from tonight.

Low = gales and heavy rain to N and Cntrl NZ Sat, then ferocious S'ly to Welly late Sat.http://t.co/NQBonCMXTZ ^RK pic.twitter.com/upHqiJoRBv

— MetService (@MetService) July 16, 2015

They follow bad weather throughout the week, with torrential downpours causing flooding in Auckland and heavy snow in the eastern North Island around Gisborne.

Heavy snow was experienced around Gisborne earlier this week. Photo: SUPPLIED / Nicholas Barclay

MetService said big seas were likely to batter Wellington's south coast for the fourth time this year.

It said the wild weather could cause flooding, bring down trees, disrupt power and make driving hazardous.

MetService forecaster Karl Loots said people should be prepared.

He said heavy rain was also expected in Northland and Auckland this morning, which will then make its way to central New Zealand.


Here Kevin Hester and I put the events into context

SEVERE WEATHER WARNING.

ISSUED BY MetService 

AT 9:23 am 18-Jul-2015

Stormy weather this weekend bringing snow to the South Island, heavy rain to the North Island and strong southerlies near Cook Strait.

A very cold southerly airstream is expected to spread over the South Island today, and onto the North Island this evening and early Sunday.

This is expected to bring snow to near sea level about southern and eastern parts of the South Island. Heavy snow is expected above 400 metres in Fiordland and Southland this morning, and in Canterbury and eastern Marlborough this afternoon and evening, where between 10 and 20cm of snow could accumulate in a 6-9 hour period. This snow has the potential to cause significant disruptions to transport throughout these areas, cause distress to people or stock in exposed outdoor places, and could damage trees and powerlines.

As these cold southerlies move over central New Zealand this evening, southerly winds are likely to rise to severe gale about Wellington and eastern Marlborough, with gusts to 120km/hr tonight and Sunday morning. This could cause damage to trees, powerlines and unsecured structures and also make driving conditions hazardous. Large seas and southery swells are also expected to develop during Sunday which may result in coastal damage about the Wellington south coast.

Further north, a series of fronts and a low crossing over the North Island today will bring short periods of heavy rain to many northern and central areas, as well as a period of very strong northerly winds which turn westerly tonight. The heaviest rain is expected about eastern Bay of Plenty, where 70-90mm of rain could accumulate in a 12 to 15 hour period from midday Saturday, with the most intense rain expected in the afternoon. This rain has the potential to cause rivers and streams to rise quickly, surface flooding and make driving conditions hazardous.

Additionally, the low is expected to bring a short period of severe northerly or westerly gales from Auckland to Taumarunui and Taupo this evening, when winds could gust to 120km/hr for a time. This has the potential to lift roofs, blow over trees, and cause other localised wind damage