Small eastern Bay of Plenty town Kawerau has had its hottest February since records began in 1954.
Niwa’s monthly climate summary report showed Kawerau had a mean air temperature of 22C during February - a 2.3C departure from normal. It also had a record mean maximum air temperature of 28.6C which was 3C higher than normal for the month and the third-highest on record.
Kawerau also scored the country’s highest temperature last month, 33C. It was the third month in a row Kawerau was the hottest place in the country. On January 24 the town recorded a temperature of 32.4C and on December 29 a scorching 34.8C.
“Daily maximum temperatures were higher than average for many parts of New Zealand,” the February climate summary said.
On the flip side, Te Puke and Whakatāne scored near-record lowest high temperatures for the month. Te Puke’s maximum temperature of 18.2C and Whakatāne’s 19C on February 28 were the fourth-lowest daily highs on record for those towns.
Tauranga was rated the wettest main centre in the country for the month - but that was because the city had near-normal rainfall levels compared with the dry conditions elsewhere. Auckland, Hamilton, Christchurch and Dunedin all had rainfall levels rated well below normal.
“It was a dry month for most main centres, except Tauranga where rainfall was near normal. Auckland [Māngere] observed its third-driest February since records began in 1959,” the report said.
“Of the six main centres in February 2025, Auckland was the warmest, driest and sunniest, Dunedin was the coolest, Tauranga was the wettest, and Christchurch was the least sunny.”
The severe thunderstorm in Taupō on February 7 that resulted in surface flooding on Lake Terrace and the CBD and power outages to 2000 people was also mentioned.
Taupō recorded a near-record mean temperature of 19.6C, 2.2C higher than normal for February and the fourth-highest mean temperature since records began in 1949. Its mean maximum air temperature of 25.8C was also the fourth-highest on record.
