MetService has issued a severe weather watch for the Bay of Plenty.
The watch is for the possibility that southeast gales may become severe, with damaging gusts in the Eastern Bay of Plenty and Taupo from Friday morning through until early Saturday morning.
People are advised to keep up todate with the latest forecasts in case this watch is upgraded to a warning.
A large low pressure system over the Tasman Sea moves slowly across northern New Zealand during the next few days, spreading a band of rain and southeast gales over the North Island and upper South Island.
Rain is likely to be breifly heavy about the upper North Island today and early Friday.
