It wasn't the Grinch that stole Napier's Carols by Candlelight for the second weekend running - it was the view of the Port of Napier Band that it was raining too hard.
But all was not lost. The three-strong Napier Christian Fellowship Church Band was called in at the last moment
to save the night for the more than 100 people who had come to sing carols.
By the time the church band arrived the rain had stopped.
The event, held at Napier's Botanical Gardens last night, was supposed to be held on December 11, but was postponed due to rain.
Port of Napier Band conductor David Oswin said the band's 27 members made their decision to pull out at 6.50pm, by which stage it had been raining for 15 minutes.
"In hindsight, which is a wonderful thing, we probably could have gone ahead," Mr Uswin said.
The church band, which had sung carols at Christmas in the Park at Anderson Park in Greenmeadows on Saturday night, performed about a dozen carols for those who had remained.
The concert ended at about 10pm.
Christmas in the Park at Anderson Park attracted about 7000 people and ran from 6pm until about 9.30pm, by which time the rain had become very heavy.
