Thunderstorms are likely in the Western Bay tonight as wild weather sweeps the country.
Metservice issued a Severe Thunderstorm Watch at 9.45am saying the Bay of Plenty west of Te Puke could expect "squally thunderstorms" from this evening until Friday afternoon.
Rain was also predicted to hit the Tauranga area, with the largest rainfall occurring midday.
An active front with thunderstorms rolling across the North Island will bring localised heavy rain, hail and strong wind gusts of 100km/h to areas like New Plymouth and Hamilton.
The same front will move across Auckland soon after, with morning commuters warned driving conditions could be very bad.