- Widespread surface flooding has hit the Wellington region and motorists have been asked to avoid non-essential travel.
- Trains on the Kapiti Line have been replaced by buses between Plimmerton and Paekākāriki due to a landslide.
- Hutt Valley High School is closed today due to a burst water main.
- MetService is expecting another 40mm of rain to fall across the region in the next six hours - the main concern being around high tide at 2.19pm.
Roads are closed, a golf club has been completely flooded and a train reportedly hit by rockfall as wild weather hammers the Wellington region.
Police have described it as “awful out there” this morning and are urging road users to take extra care and limit movements to essential travel.
In a post to social media they said flooding and slips had already been reported on a number of roads, including parts of SH2, particularly between Petone and Silverstream.
NZTA Waka Kotahi said SH2 near Petone is down to one northbound lane just prior to the Dowse Drive interchange.
Motorists are being advised to expect delays if travelling north.
Flooding is also affecting SH58, Pāuatahanui to Judgeford, and cars are being removed from the Riverbank carpark in Lower Hutt - an area beside the Hutt River prone to flooding.
RNZ said a train travelling from Waikanae to Wellington had been hit by a rockfall. There are no reports of injuries, but passengers said they could hear the rocks hitting while going from Paekakariki and Pukerua Bay on Monday morning.
Metlink said trains on the Kapiti Line have been replaced by buses between Plimmerton and Paekākāriki due to a landslide.
Trains are still running between Wellington and Plimmerton, and Paekākāriki and Waikanae.
In Naenae in Lower Hutt, Police have partially blocked off Cambridge Tce due to flooding across the entire road. A patrol car has blocked off northbound access.
Part of Strand Crescent in Naenae is also fully flooded with water spilling onto some properties. A local woman said while the area does flood at times it normally does not cover the entire road.
One resident was surprised to open her front door and see the flooding out on the road. She said she heard the heavy rain overnight but hadn’t realized the street was filling up.
Some cars can be seen driving through the flood waters, sending waves into nearby properties.
Hutt Valley High School is closed today due to a burst water main. In a post on social media it said there was currently no water supply to the school.
The Judgeford Golf Club has been completely flooded and is closed until further notice.
A Porirua City Council spokesperson is recommending people stay off the roads and work from home if possible.
Porirua officials met at 8:30am to discuss the situation with council, Fire and Emergency, and Wellington Water. The council spokesperson says Wellington Water is clearing culverts in Whitby and East Porirua and added Fire and Emergency was “inundated”.
They said MetService is expecting 40mm of rain in the region across the next six hours - the main concern being around high tide at 2.19pm, with potential worries about the Pauatahanui Inlet.
MetService said a Heavy Rain Warning is in place for Wellington and the Kapiti Coast with 50 to 70mm of rain expected in the 12 hours until 6pm Monday. Thunderstorms are also possible, with peak rainfall rates of 15 to 25mm/h.
The weather agency said streams and rivers may rise rapidly and the rain could cause surface flooding, slips and difficult driving conditions.
A number of bus services across the region have also been affected by the weather.
Early dose of spring
Potential thunderstorms and blustery winds are set to deliver New Zealand an early dose of spring weather this week – with balmy temperatures also in the mix for some eastern centres.
After a weekend of stormy weather in the west of the South Island – MetService had multiple warnings and watches in place from Southland to the Grey and Buller districts overnight – more unsettled conditions are on the cards for the coming days.
“We’ve got a broad west-to-northwest flow covering the country into the start of calendar spring, which will mean active fronts passing through, and plenty of boisterous northwesterly or westerly winds,” MetService meteorologist Gerard Bellam said.
“Most of the rain will again be in [the] west – especially the west of the South Island – but some of it will reach up to the west of the North Island, as will those strong, blustery winds.”
A heavy rain watch is in place for the Tararua Range throughout Monday.
On Tuesday, there was a chance that more rain warnings would be needed for the west of the South Island, along with the central North Island, from Taranaki across to eastern Bay of Plenty.
There was also a moderate possibility that rainfall would reach warning amounts in the Tararua Range, as well as Mt Taranaki.
By Wednesday, the northwest flow was expected to spread over southern and central New Zealand, with embedded fronts bringing more rain to the southwest.
On Thursday, there was also a moderate chance that northwesterly winds could reach severe gale strength across Marlborough Sounds, Wellington, Wairarapa and Tararua.
Bellam said the good news was that this weather pattern would provide much-needed top-ups to the southern hydro lakes – along with welcome warmth for pasture growth around the country.
After temperatures hit double digits in some spots over the weekend, more balmy weather was likely in the east this week, with centres like Napier and Hastings reaching the high teens to early 20s.
Niwa weather forecaster Ben Noll said those in the western and northern North Island might this week also see thunderstorms amid frequent showers and “potentially damaging” winds that could impact flights.
“Overall, the set-up of different pressure patterns around the hemisphere is making for a pretty rocky end to winter and start to spring,” Noll said.
Niwa’s climate outlook for spring is due out this week.
Jamie Morton is a specialist in science and environmental reporting. He joined the Herald in 2011 and writes about everything from conservation and climate change to natural hazards and new technology.
