KEY POINTS:
July was a month of weather extremes nationally with Auckland getting an above-average drenching.
Severe floods, numerous tornadoes, destructive winds, dense fog, ice and severe frosts took their toll across the country.
The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research July climate summary shows rainfall was well above the average in the north and the east of the North Island and in coastal south Canterbury and Otago but below average in the north and west of the South Island.
The national average temperature of 8. C was above normal but belies the north/south contrast.
Mean temperatures in the southern half of the South Island were 1C below average while much of the North Island was .5C above the usual.
Carla Salinger, of Weatherwise Auckland, said Auckland's temperature had fluctuated, starting the month in the average range of 14.1C maximum to 7.8C minimum.
The mercury dropped a little before reaching a higher-than-average level for the last two weeks.
But that did not stop the rain coming down. The City of Sails usually gets 140mm of rain during July. Pukekohe - the driest spot last month - got 170mm while Helensville, closer to the storms that lashed Northland, was the recipient of 280mm.
Nationwide, sunshine hours were above average in the west and south of the South Island and below average in the east of the North Island.
A depression west of the North Island on July 4-5 produced thunderstorms and swarms of tornadoes in Taranaki. Auckland and Tauranga were also hit by tornadoes.
In Northland, easterly gales and heavy rain produced widespread flooding resulting in property, infrastructure and stock losses on July 10. Winds gusted as high as 180km/h on the offshore island of Tiritiri Matangi, with 254mm of rain falling in 12 hours on Kaeo. The estimated damage was $60 million.
Of the main centres, Auckland was the warmest, Christchurch the coldest and driest and Dunedin the sunniest.
Extreme weather
* Hottest: 20.4C at Gisborne on July 1 and at Christchurch on July 26.
* Coldest: - 15.4C at Lauder (Otago) on July 18.
* Wettest: 254mm rainfall in 12 hours at Kaeo but flooding also hit other parts of Northland, Hawkes Bay and south Canterbury.
