Beachgoers warned to stay away as huge swell pummels coast. Video / Charlotte Rasmussen / Emmarose Cowie / Zsania Johnson / Alison Smith / Jordan Smith / Greg Malcolm / Jordan Richmond HC Post
There is a "pretty good possibility" the Mount Maunganui coastline will experience similar conditions to Sunday due to the forecasted high tides and the total lunar eclipse, a MetService meteorologist says.
MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris said according to the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), between May 25and 30 the tides were expected to be some of the higher tides we get throughout the year.
"These things happen once a month - we come into these highest tides when everything aligns," he said.
"There's a pretty good possibility up until midday Thursday that about the [time of] high tide, you will see some more conditions like you saw on Sunday."
Ferris said the total lunar eclipse lined up for Wednesday night was also a sign tides would be at their highest - "when the moon, sun and earth are all in a straight line".
Although Monday had calmer conditions, Ferris said the wind was expected to pick up on Wednesday meaning larger waves were expected.
"As we head into Wednesday, we expect the swell period to get longer - the waves and the swell will have more energy so are able to run up the beach even further, or when they crash into rocks the spray could go even higher up. The walkway around the mount is a pretty open spot to that kind of stuff."
Beachgoers were asked to stay out of the water on Sunday. Photo / Luke Kirkness
Access to Mauao base track and Moturiki (Leisure Island) was closed by the Tauranga City Council for a period of time on Sunday and Monday following the dangerous sea swells and high tides.
Team Leader of Parks and Environment at Tauranga City Council Warren Aitken said if the swells were likely to rise again this week over Te ara Tutanga/the base track and envelop the access to Moturiki like on Sunday and Monday, the council would take a precautionary approach and close them.
"During these high swells we need to close the low-lying tracks to ensure we are doing everything we can to keep people safe. If one of our team members tells you the track is closed, it is for very good reason, please leave the track as soon as you can," Aitken said.
Aitken reported the two lowest points of Te ara Tutanga/base track had incurred damage on Sunday as the top surface had eroded.
"This has happened in the past and in an attempt to reduce the potential for further damage, we placed natural rocks along the track margins to defuse the waves. Although there has still been some damage, it was less than the damage caused by previous weather events. We have prepared as much as we practically can for these weather events – these low points are naturally susceptible."
One set of stairs that led down to the beach on the ocean side of Mauao had broken and was washed away on Sunday night.
Monster swells at Mount Maunganui beach on Sunday. Photo / Luke Kirkness
Garry Towler, Thames-Coromandel District Council civil defence controller, previously said the forecasted high tides including king tides later in the week meant it could be "pretty dangerous" out there.
Most of the Coromandel beaches - including Whangamatā, Pauanui and Tairua - had been impacted and lost huge amounts of sand.
"They all suffered ... huge amount of sand movement. What that does is exposes a lot of rocks and exposes a lot of potential for erosion."
Every available TCDC staff member and contractor was carrying out rapid assessments and checking all the beaches to ensure the structures were safe, Towler said.
Towler was also worried about the big king tides due to hit on Wednesday to Friday and was expecting similar levels of water breaches as those of yesterday afternoon.
Once the king tides receded next week, the council would then move into recovery mode and start rebuilding the beaches.
"It will be quite an expensive fix, this one."
Surfers at Mount Maunganui Main Beach on Monday. Photo / George Novak
Spotting the "rare super blood moon"
Stargazers in the Bay of Plenty who are wanting to catch a glimpse of the first "super blood moon" in nearly 40 years still have a chance of spotting it despite forecasted cloud, a Niwa meteorologist says.
Niwa meteorologist Ben Noll said a "super blood moon" was a rare combination of three factors - a full moon, the moon being at its closest point to Earth in its orbit and a total lunar eclipse.
"Between 11.11 and 11.25pm on Wednesday the moon will appear rusty red in colour and larger than usual. The red colour is due to the Earth blocking the sun's light and only heavily filtered light reaching the moon," said Noll.
"There is some scattered cloud forecast for the Bay of Plenty, but stargazers shouldn't be discouraged because there may be enough breaks in the cloud to spot the moon."
