Near-record: Rotorua hit by 752mm of rain over summer, NIWA reports

Weather experts have confirmed just how terrible last summer was.

Rotorua experienced more than 750mm of rain and near-record wind gusts travelling at 95 kilometres per hour.

According to NIWA’s climate summary report for the season, Rotorua received 242 per cent of its usual seasonal rainfall between December and February.

In total, 752mm of rain hit the city, the third-highest summer rainfall since records began in 1963.

The near-record rainfall was accompanied by high-speed wind gusts which peaked at 95 kilometres per hour on February 13.

This marked the fourth-highest speed winds to blow through Rotorua since the records began in 1972.

Rotorua was one of 18 North Island locations and six South Island locations observed a record or near-record wet February.

According to NIWA, it was the wettest summer on record for the Bay of Plenty region as a whole.

The nationwide average temperature for summer 2022-23 was 17.9°C, making summer 2022-23 the country’s third-warmest summer on record.

The major weather events of the summer included two cyclones: Hale and Gabrielle.

Cyclone Gabrielle’s damage to the North Island in mid-February included historic flooding, widespread destruction to agricultural, horticultural and viticultural lands, dozens of impassable roads, severe coastal erosion, the country’s third-ever national state of emergency declaration and loss of life.

Emergency Management Bay of Plenty director Clinton Naude said the summer stood out because “we have had one major weather event after another”.

“They placed a heavy load on people and communities across the North Island. Unfortunately, climate change means we will be dealing with a greater number of major storms than we have in the past.”

Naude said Bay of Plenty Civil Defence personnel had supported emergency responses across Bay of Plenty, Auckland, Tairawhiti and Hawkes Bay in recent weeks.

“We still have people going in to relieve responders in badly-hit areas. So although it is only March, it has already been a busy year.”

Rotorua Lakes Council infrastructure and environmental solutions deputy chief executive Stavros Michael. Photo / Andrew Warner

Rotorua Lakes Council estimated Cyclone Gabrielle had cost $500,000 in emergency repairs and slip clearing and $150,000 in damages to lakeside structures such as walkways and jetties.

Rotorua Lakes Council deputy chief executive infrastructure and environment Stavros Michael said the extreme weather highlighted the importance of community preparedness.

“As an organisation, we continue to work with developers to ensure good planning and design of housing and commercial development that address foreseeable risks such as flooding and land stability.

“However, it’s important for people to understand that this does not guarantee there won’t be flooding or damage as a result of future events because we cannot predict the nature, intensity or extent of future weather events that could exceed the network’s design capacities.”

Michael said resilience at an individual, household and wider community level was key.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand acting district manager Brendon Grylls said fire and emergency had attended 130 weather-related callouts in the Bay of Plenty between December 1 and February 28.

“Cyclone Gabrielle was an unprecedented and catastrophic event,” Grylls said.

“Our fire and emergency volunteer and career crews went above and beyond to assist members of their communities, and continue to do so.”

Mamaku School principal and Rotorua Principals' Association president Gary Veysi. Photo / Andrew Warner

Rotorua Principals’ Association president and Mamaku School Principal Gary Veysi said the wet weather created work for schools.

Veysi said the beginning of the year was typically when schools scheduled outdoor activities that could not easily be rescheduled and fundraising galas that when cancelled incurred costs.

“It really unsettles the programming because you have to do a lot of work and risk management and notices.”

Veysi said it also sometimes meant students needed to stay inside.

“Some fields turned to mud. We had some slips up in Mamaku and a lot of schools had trees come down on their properties.

“While you get those trees checked the kids can’t be out on the field because it’s dangerous and there’s a cost to all that.”

The cost, Veysi said, extended to the psychological effects of power outages at home and the lack of clean water affecting some areas after Cyclone Gabrielle.

“Weather changes the mood,” Veysi said.

“We’re trying to bring families and communities back in after Covid-19 and the rain has made that harder.”

Rotorua Lakes Council rural ward councillor Karen Barker. Photo / Andrew Warner

Rotorua Lakes Council rural ward councillor Karen Barker said the wet summer had been “challenging” for rural communities.

“It has impacted the farming community at various levels,” Barker said.

“[There was] significant loss of roading infrastructure, cutting off parts of the community for the day or even longer.”

As of Friday, NIWA’s report stated that soil moisture levels were well above normal across the North Island.

“[In some areas] various dam systems created a backup in streams which led to significant amounts of water lying around in paddocks for days or weeks at a time,” Barker said.

Barker said some farmers had found it difficult to graze their animals due to the wet ground and needed to find feed while some farmers fell behind in production.

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport agency maintenance and operations national manager Neil Walker said the majority of the North Island’s road network has been put under “major stress by a continued battering” of extreme weather.

“This means contractors are either behind schedule or re-focused on to the recovery from Cyclone Hale, the Auckland Anniversary Floods and Cyclone Gabrielle,” Walker said.

Walker said Waka Kotahi was working through what recovery would look like in the most cyclone-damaged regions.

“We know that contractors in these areas are up against it this summer, however, they will take every opportunity they can to complete their maintenance programmes as the weather allows,” Walker said.