Concertgoers at tonight's Adele show will be kicking themselves if they haven't brought ponchos, as heavy rain has started to fall over Mt Smart Stadium.
Heavy downpours and possible thunderstorms have moved into Auckland this evening after pelting Northland and Whangarei.
While the Adele concert is carrying on despite the rain, Auckland Museum has cancelled tonight's outdoor exhibition "ANTARCTICA: while you were sleeping" due to the torrential rain. The show, created by artist Joseph Michael, was to be a "fully immersive" experience with the Auckland Museum transformed into a 360-degree projection of an Antarctic iceberg.
Auckland Museum said it "sincerely apologise[d]" for any inconvenience caused.
"ANTARCTICA: while you were sleeping" is designed as an all-weather event, however holding an event in this severe weather is a health and safety risk to the public.
Weatherwatch's Philip Duncan said around 6pm Northland and Whangarei were experiencing very intense downpours fuelled by subtropical winds. The wet is moving "in a straight line" down towards Auckland, with rain already starting in Helensville. While there could be patches of dry, there will be strong gusts of wind.
Areas hit by rain could experience flooding, Duncan warned. Isolated thunderstorms are also possible.
"Northern Auckland is at risk and north of the city centre, as well as rural areas," Duncan said. Those at Mt Smart Stadium at Adele's final concert were also potentially in the firing line, with the possibility of isolated thunderstorms, he said.
Umbrellas are banned at the Adele concert, which was due to start at 7.30pm. . "It's a good thing umbrellas aren't allowed - ponchos are probably safer," Duncan said.
But nothing is certain. "It's like waiting for popcorn to pop. You don't know which one will go first, and we don't know which cloud is going to explode into life with a torrential downpour."
!WeatherAlert: #Auckland - Heavy downpours are approaching from the north. Isolated areas of flooding possible between 6pm & midnight.
The storm will continue south and could bring rain and thunderstorms to Waikato, Coromandel Peninsula and the Bay of Plenty overnight and on Monday morning. Possible downpours could still be seen on Monday morning in Auckland but the storm will then shift south to the rest of the North Island.
MetService is predicting today's heaviest Auckland rain will fall tonight, with 4.7mm from 6pm to 8pm, a further 10mm by 10pm, followed by 10.2mm between 10pm and midnight.
Metservice's rain radar for Auckland shows patches of heavy rain on their way. Image / MetService
Earlier this evening traffic was congested heading toward the city in both directions but the motorways were now running smoothly, NZTA spokeswoman Sarah Azam. People had travelled early and most concertgoers were already at the venue, she said.
Mark Hannan, of Auckland Transport, said AT was hoping tonight's transport arrangements would run as smoothly as those for the first two Adele concerts.
"You have to be a wee bit patient because we have to move a lot of people, around 30,000 people.
"There will be plenty of trains and buses. It does take a while to move that many people through Penrose Station."
Auckland Transport said that for Thursday night's concert, 80 per cent of the crowd travelled on public transport - close to 27,000 on the trains and 7600 on buses.
Hannan said that for the second concert, the numbers were 19,400 on trains and 6600 on buses.
