Wild weather lashes the Onerahi foreshore. Photo / John Stone
Wild weather lashes the Onerahi foreshore. Photo / John Stone
The worst of the torrential rain and wind is over and a mostly fine but chilly weekend beckons Northland. MetService said areas around Northland received three times the normal hourly rain from early yesterday as an area of low pressure with cloud wrapped around it moved from the subtropics.
PureruaPeninsula, north west of the Bay of Islands, received 90mm of rain in the 12 hours to 2pm yesterday.MetService meteorologist John Law said 25mm fell in just one hour, between 12pm and 1pm, which was a lot as anything over 6mm was considered heavy. Kerikeri Airport got 18.8mm between 12pm and 1pm, Whangārei 38mm in 12 hours while just 14mm fell in Dargaville over the same period.
Intermittent showers with overnight lows of between 6C and 7C are forecast for tomorrow through to Sunday.
"Next week, the westerlies return bringing isolated showers. The present rain is not just persistent but there are also heavy downpours and it's just a case of people being aware of potential flooding, slips and slides," Law said.
There were no reports of slips or road closures throughout Northland yesterday. Kerikeri Fire Brigade was called to Onekura Rd, Waipapa, about 1.20pm to help a resident whose home was threatened by flooding.
Fire chief Les Wasson said the water was rising and ''a few inches'' from entering the house so the volunteers used shovels to dig some drains and divert the water. There was also significant surface flooding on the road.
''It must have really pelted down up there,'' he said.
Service for Clarke today
Louise Pipiriana Clarke (nee Naera), wife of Far North District Council chief executive Shaun Clarke, has died after a long illness.
