Get set for overnight thunderstorms, rain - and possible snow

Tuesday, 21 August 2018

Photographer Clay Drummond took this footage of a tornado about 5km south of Whakatāne.

Strap yourself in for the long haul - the persistent rain that fell during Tuesday is sticking around overnight and for the next few days.

MetService says there's still a risk for thunderstorms until noon on Wednesday and a possibility of late evening snow on the Desert Road, the Lewis Pass and Milford Road.

The coast from Waikato down to Wellington and also the eastern Bay of Plenty could see some heavier rainfall and stronger winds due to thunderstorms.

Unsettled weather continues for much of the country, but there were no more tornados onTuesday, after damaging tornados struck New Plymouth and Ohope on Monday evening.

'There's heavy rain possible overnight for Taranaki and the King Country including Tongariro National Park, as well as for Kapiti, Horowhenua and the Tararuas north of Wellington,' MetService said.

Much of the country had another wet day on Tuesday - and there's more on the way.

* Heavy rain, snow, thunderstorms enveloping much of NZ**

'Because the system is so complicated, there's quite a lot of uncertainty about the position and timing of the rain.'

It was looking as if it would ease a little on Wednesday, but the rainfall would follow a similar pattern.

A tornado tore through New Plymouth on Monday evening, damaging multiple properties.

During Tuesday, rain was 'on and off' for most of the western side of the country - right from Hokitika to the far north.

The east and far south, however, were fine, according to MetService.

Tuesday's continuing rain fell on areas that had already been drenched.

In the 12 hours to 5am Tuesday, 48mkm of rain was recorded in the ranges of Bay of Plenty east of Whakatāne, and there was 42mm in the Wellington suburb of Karori.

During the 24 hours to 5am, the wettest place in the country was Mt Taranaki, which had about 150mm, while Takaka had about 94mm.

Early on Tuesday, MetService meteorologist Bill Singh said: 'There's a very unstable and very complex low, a broad low, circulating around the whole country,' Singh said.

'With the instability there's going to be a lot of showers, with some heavy falls and thunderstorms. That's going to affect the country for the next few days.'

MetService said the broad low had 'lots of little low pressure systems' within it.

THE OUTLOOK

'A complex low and associated front affecting the country are expected to move southeastwards away from New Zealand late Thursday, followed by cold southwesterly flow on Friday,' MetService said.

'These systems should bring a period of heavy rain and strong northwesterly winds to parts of the North Island … a cool south to southwesterly flow is expected to spread north over the country during Thursday and early Friday, bringing periods of rain, and snow to the ranges of Southland, Otago, Canterbury and Marlborough, and southern half of the North Island, but the forecast rainfall and snow amounts are not expected to reach warning criteria.

'A ridge of high pressure should spread onto New Zealand from the Tasman Sea on Saturday, bringing settled weather to much of the country for the weekend.'