No dry cycle in weather washing machine

Another day . . .  another rain event.

Wash, rinse and repeat but no dry cycle as the Gisborne-East Coast district remains saturated after the latest weather.

Gisborne District Council’s rain  gauge network shows the heaviest falls over the past couple of days have been at the top end of the district.

Rain totals reached the 200-millimetre mark at the top of East Cape and in the steep country around Mount Hikurangi.

Lesser amounts fell in the Gisborne and south inland areas, but enough to see the land once again under surface flooding.

Daily climate maps from the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) show how the entire eastern coastal region is well beyond normal levels for soil moisture at this time of year.

The chart (above right) shows that over the 15 days from November 19 to December 4, up to 300mm of rain fell, thwarting any hopes of the ground drying out.

The charts also show rainfall is 400 percent of normal for the time of year.

One heavy rain watch was lifted by MetService yesterday morning only to be quickly replaced by another for  yesterday and overnight. — RH