In an unusual turn of events three of the top four areas with the most rainfall in the country were in Hawke's Bay yesterday.
According to NIWA, instead of being the driest in New Zealand, Wairoa, the Wharerata Range and Tuai were the wettest, with Napier not far behind.
NIWA climate scientist Nava Fedaeff said Wairoa hit 48.8mms, the Wharerata Ranges 48.2mms and Tuai 29.8mms yesterday with rain still falling.
The temperatures were also below what Hawke's Bay had become acclimatised to with a high of just 18C in Napier and 20C in Hastings yesterday.
This was about a 10C drop from Tuesday when temperatures were in the low thirties.
MetService meteorologist Tuporo Marsters said the southerly flow onshore meant the Wairoa district caught all the rain.
Meanwhile, Napier was not far behind with 17.4mms yesterday with rain still trickling through.
John Bailey who farms just out of Nuhaka, north of Wairoa, described the rain as "pennies from heaven".
"We have had 49mms so far and it is extremely beneficial to us as creeks and springs which had never dried out in my memory before managed to dry out this season."
He said this summer has been tough with the exceptional winds, high temperatures and little rain.
"The rain is a good start but for it to make any difference we need it to continue for about 10 to 14 days."
He hoped the rain would do just that so the moisture produced would not evaporate right away.
Unfortunately for farmers, Ms Fedaeff said the long-term outlook through to April didn't look too good on the rain front.
"The rain that came throughout the day was in small amounts which was good for soil moisture but these events are not going to be common."
This was evident in the forecast with the weekend returning to north-westerly winds, sunny skies and hot temperatures.
Mr Marsters said Napier would reach a high of 23C on Saturday and 30C on Sunday, with Hastings getting to 24C on Saturday and 31C on Sunday.
"The hot northwesterlies come back and the temperatures climb again," Mr Masters said.
Tomorrow was expected to cooler with a high of 20C for Napier and Hastings.
Scattered showers were expected to fall in the morning but these should clear bringing fine weather.
The south-easterly winds also die out.