With the mercury hitting 31.8C on Monday, Whangarei had its warmest day since records began half a century ago.
A combination of hot air from across the Tasman, northwest winds and dry ground conditions in Northland helped raise the temperature which broke the previous February record of 31.4C set Tuesday last week.
The National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) began records for Whangarei in 1967.
Niwa meteorologist Ben Noll said 31.8C at 4.30pm was a "very hot day" by Whangarei standards. It was not, however, a Northland record.
Kerikeri's warmest temperature on record was 35C on February 2, 2009, Dargaville hit 32.4C on February 20, 1998, and Kaitaia's hit 30.6C on February 18, 1974.