A windy weekend is on the cards for parts of the North Island, with strong winds, thunderstorms and hail forecast across Te Ika-a-Māui in the coming days.
MetService has issued multiple strong wind watches ahead of an active front that is expected to move across the area on Sunday, followed by southwest gales.
Rain warnings, strong winds set to barrel across the country – Watch on TVNZ+
In the lower North Island, a strong wind watch was in place for Hawke’s Bay south of Napier, the Tararua District, and Wairarapa north of Martinborough until midnight.
Westerly winds may approach severe gale strength, and MetService said there was a moderate chance the watch could be upgraded to a warning.
Northland was under a wind watch from 1pm to 9pm Sunday, while a watch for Auckland, Great Barrier Island, Coromandel Peninsula and Waikato north of Hamilton was in place from 3pm to midnight on Sunday.
The alert zone stretched from Ngāruawāhia to Cape Reinga, with gusts potentially reaching 90km/h in exposed areas.
Friday afternoon brought a risk of severe thunderstorms across parts of the North Island.
MetService warned of heavy rain, hail, and squally conditions from Northland to Horowhenua, with a moderate risk of thunderstorms in regions including Auckland, Waikato, Coromandel, Taumarunui, Whanganui, Manawatū, Tararua, and Horowhenua.
Snow disrupts South Island highways
NZTA also urged caution on the South Island’s highways, reminding motorists that snow was expected in the coming days, despite spring beginning on Monday.
State Highway 7 (Lewis Pass) was closed this morning due to snow, and forecasts supplied to Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency indicated more snow was on the way. Up to 10cm of snow was expected above 750m in the Lewis Pass area before 10am on Monday, with lighter snowfalls anticipated over the weekend.
State Highway 73 was also expected to be impacted, with snow showers forecast through to Monday around Arthur’s Pass and east of Craigieburn Cutting. Gusty winds and rain were also predicted for the region, potentially compounding travel difficulties.
In the Mackenzie Basin, light snowfalls of around 2cm were possible on State Highways 8 and 80 on Sunday and Tuesday.
NZTA Central South Island system manager Mark Pinner said road crews were on standby to respond to any snow accumulation.
“Our focus will be keeping those highways open and safe for people to travel on,” Pinner said.
“If the risk is too high, we may close the roads or put in place temporary speed reductions. Road users can play their part by planning ahead and driving to the conditions.”
Meanwhile, on State Highway 94 (Milford Rd), MetService forecast 10-20cm of snow near the summit through to Saturday night, with lighter snow down to 700m. The road would close from 5pm today between Hollyford Junction and Donne River Bridge and was expected to reopen once conditions improved.
