Heavy rain warnings and watches for Hawke’s Bay: Bay View Market cancelled, Harvest festival urges umbrellas

Harvest Hawke’s Bay will go ahead on Saturday - rain or not.

At 10am on Friday, MetService issued an orange heavy rain warning for Hawke’s Bay, north of Napier, for a 30-hour period between 7am on Saturday and 1pm on Sunday.

While Harvest Hawke’s Bay event manager Liz Pollock is busy working on contingencies, the Bay View Market Day, which is the major fundraiser for cyclone-affected Eskdale School and its community, has been cancelled.

Raffle tickets will still be for sale and donations can be made online.

“We don’t have a Givealittle page or anything like that, but we do have a PTA bank account that is on our Eskdale School website and we will be selling our raffle tickets and mystery sticks at Pak‘nSave in Napier tomorrow between 10 and 2,” Bay View Market Day organiser Michelle Barnes said.

Barnes said it’s been an “emotional and stressful” few months for the community and more rain is almost the icing on the cake. She especially felt for all the stall holders that committed to the event.

“This isn’t what I needed. We’d hoped for a nice sunny day and lots of people out shopping, but it’s just not going to happen,” said Barnes.

Harvest Hawke’s Bay, however, which is being held on Tuki Tuki Rd, near Havelock North, is in a zone with a heavy rain watch rather than a warning and is “absolutely” going ahead.

“We’re very much advising all our festival-goers to dress accordingly and we’re just in the process of having our fabulous, flagship 40-metre marquee put down the centre of the site, so there will be plenty of shelter,” Pollock said.

“We’re very excited, it’s been a long time coming and we’re committed as are all our exhibitors. It’s going to be great wine, great food, lots of shelter, great music, great day.

“People are welcome to bring handheld brollies and a sensible shoe but, as someone said to me the other day, good times are not weather dependent.”

Pollock said she’s hopeful Havelock North will be spared the worst of any rain, with MetService forecasting the Wairoa district will be hardest hit.

It said 130mm to 180mm of rain could accumulate during the orange warning period, potentially causing streams and rivers to rise rapidly. Surface flooding and slips are also possible, with drivers advised the conditions could be hazardous.

Hamish Bidwell joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2022 and works out of the Hastings newsroom.