Heavy rain to hit the Bay of Plenty

Metservice has issued a heavy rain watch for Rotorua and the wider Bay of Plenty. Photo / File

For many, the last couple of bluebird days was a welcome sign that spring was finally here.

However to put a dampener on this, heavy rain has been forecast to hit the Bay of Plenty tomorrow night through to Wednesday.

Metservice has issued a heavy rain watch for Rotorua and the wider Bay of Plenty from 6pm tomorrow through to Wednesday 3pm.

Northeasterly gales and periods of heavy rain are expected to affect northern parts of the North Island during Tuesday and Wednesday, according to Metservice.

Heavy rain watches are also in place for the Western Bay of Plenty, Northland, Auckland and the Coromandel Peninsula.

For both Tauranga and Rotorua, heavy rain is expected to develop tomorrow afternoon and remain heavy through Wednesday with strong north easterlies too.

Rain is also expected on Thursday and Friday for both centres.