Matariki weather: Fine spells ahead, Hawke’s Bay sheltered from the worst

Places such as coastal Westshore in Napier will be welcoming the spell of fine weather this Matariki weekend. Photo / Paul Taylor

As Te Matau-a-Māui gears up to celebrate Matariki the region is finally set to be treated to a much-needed dose of fine weather.

MetService meteorologist Amy Rossiter said a “disturbed west-southwest flow” over New Zealand would likely not impact Hawke’s Bay too much this weekend, a welcome break from recent bad weather.

Heavy rain wiped outdoor activities off the menu for most of the first weekend of the school holidays, before coastal flooding impacted residents of the Napier settlement of Westshore on Monday.

Rossiter said the southwesterlies would involve the passing of “quite a few” different fronts and features that could bring periods of rain to the country.

“But generally ... Hawke’s Bay is sheltered,” she said.

Some light showers may fall early on Friday and early Saturday, which could dampen events like Hākari Matariki in Hastings, but clearing weather on Saturday evening means it’s likely all systems go for the proposed mass bonfire burning that will light up the coast.

“Towards the end of Saturday and into Sunday we get the flow turning back a bit more westerly so things should clear out there,” Rossiter said.

In a welcome surprise, temperatures over the weekend are set to reach the high teens with Napier getting up to 19C on Sunday.

While day temperatures look promising people should still look to wrap up warm for night Matariki events (like the Whānau Marama light show at Ātea a Rangi) as the cold front and southerly change will bring some chillier temperatures in the evening.

Rossiter said people should expect movement and occasional changes.

“With all the features that are passing through there is a little bit of variability and uncertainty,” she said.

She encouraged people to keep an eye on MetService throughout the week to see if there were any changes.