March much wetter than normal in much of the country

Heavy rains in the Thames Coromandel area caused flooding and road closures. Photo / Christine Cornege.

March was a wet month for much of the country, with almost all of the North Island experiencing well above average rainfall, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research said yesterday.

Rainfall levels were more than 150 per cent of normal levels in almost all of the North Island, the Marlborough Sounds, coastal Southland and also throughout much of Otago, Niwa said.

The highest day of rainfall was 159mm, recorded at Whitianga, 86km east of Auckland, on March 21.

Sunshine levels were well above average on the West Coast of the South Island, with Greymouth recording its sunniest March on record.

Northland and North Otago both experienced fewer than normal sunshine hours, according to the institute.

During the month, anticyclones or "highs" dominated to the east of New Zealand, bringing more northeasterly winds than usual, Niwa said.

For the majority of the country the temperatures were close to normal, except for the east coast of the North Island between North Cape and East Cape, which had higher than normal temperatures, and a few small areas around the Central Plateau and alpine areas of Westland, which had lower than usual temperatures.

The highest temperature recorded in the month was 31.4C, at Christchurch on March 4.

The lowest temperature recorded was minus 2.3C, at Masterton on March 8.

- NZPA