Wet and windy week changes to warmer weekend for Whanganui

Summery weather is forecast to return this weekend. Photo / NZME

A bit of rain and cooler temperatures for Whanganui marked the transition to autumn, but another warm and “summery” weekend is ahead.

“There was a really big rain band that was being pushed up and over the country by quite cold southwesterlies, which brought rainfall to pretty much the entirety of the country,” MetService meteorologist Alec Holden said.

Whanganui had 28mm of rain on Tuesday, over eight times more than the 3.4mm recorded at Whanganui Airport during February.

The overnight temperatures dropped to 9C.

Following the wet weather, Whanganui was buffeted by strong winds on Wednesday, resulting in power outages to more than 10,000 customers.

“As that frontal system moved away from the country, those southwesterlies transitioned to southerlies and that’s where we saw those strong winds,” Holden said.

“We were looking at 80km/h gusts in the morning as those southerly winds were channelled through Cook Strait and beamed straight into the Whanganui area,” he said.

Moving into the weekend, conditions were expected to remain similar to Thursday and Friday – warmer days, colder nights and relatively clear skies.

“On Saturday, however, we are seeing showers coming in from the west. Thankfully, though, the showers aren’t set to be long-lived,” Holden said

“In fact, on Sunday we return to slightly more summery conditions, although it’s looking to be a bit breezy again.”

Whanganui could expect a high of 22C and an overnight low of 11C on Saturday and Sunday.

“On Monday we go back to just being really nice, summery weather with lighter winds,” Holden said.

Monday’s temperature was forecast to jump a couple of degrees, hitting a high of 24C and an overnight low of 13C.

Olivia Reid is a multimedia journalist based in Whanganui.