Weather watch issued for Bay

Rain, rain, go away - MetService has issued a severe weather watch for the Bay of Plenty.

Periods of heavy rain from this evening through to Thursday evening were forecasted for areas west of Te Puke.

A moist easterly flow was expected to continue over the North Island until Friday.

The rain could be significant, especially in areas where ground conditions were already saturated.

MetService predicted a high of 17 degrees in Tauranga today and a low of 12 degrees overnight.

It would not be until Friday that the sun is predicted to make an appearance, with fine spells forecasted with afternoon showers.