Wild weather lashes the Bay

A surfer gets some air at Tay St Beach Mt Maunganui no doubt helped by the powerful offshore winds that buffeted the North Island during Saturday evening and into Sunday. Photo/Alan Gibson

Wild weather lashed parts of the Bay of Plenty yesterday but Tauranga managed to escape mostly unscathed.

North west winds reached 44km/h and squally rain kept things wet throughout the day with a total of 9.2mm.

However, there was little damage reported to emergency services, unlike other areas of the North Island where trees blocked roads near Turangi and heavy seas closed State Highway 58 near Porirua.

In the wider Bay of Plenty, four kayakers needed to be rescued from Lake Rotorua after wild winds prevented them from returning to shore.