Heavy Rain Watch after windy weekend of gusts up to 105kmh

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

The latest assault from the sub-tropics passed the Gisborne-East Coast region without too much fuss, but another weather pattern has resulted in new watches issued by MetService.

The agency yesterday put a Heavy Rain Watch in place for the northeast of the North Island, including the Gisborne district.

For this region, MetService is advising periods of heavy rain and amounts could approach warning criteria over the 24 hours from midnight tonight (Tuesday night) through to midnight Wednesay night.

Wind was more the issue than rain over the past few days. The strongest gust of 105kmh was measured at Pouawa at 7am on Sunday.

Ruatoria had a gust of almost  100kmh at 9pm on Saturday night, and over the three days from Friday to Sunday many locations had strong winds. Hick’s Bay, the Whareratas and Matawai all experienced gusts over 80kmh.

The heaviest rain of the period was

146 millimetres in the ranges at Raukumara Station. Falls of 50 to 70mm  were recorded in other parts of East Cape, and there were  lesser amounts further south.

As of yesterday, 13 roads around the region were still closed by weather damage, and 30 were under restrictions.

See the online map and details at tinyurl.com/4hp4h96z