Strong winds buffet whole region

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Some serious gusts of wind hit parts of the district yesterday, but most of Gisborne-Tairāwhiti was spared anything of real strength.

MetService had issued a strong wind watch forecasting up to gale-force south-westerlies.

The exposed Pouawa coast had wind reaching 112kmh around 2pm yesterday, while a gauge in the Wharerata hills recorded 109kmh at about ten minutes to midday.

On Tuesday afternoon, it gusted up to 95kmh inland at Wharekopae.

In the past six years some of the strongest winds in the district were recorded at Poroporo Fire Station near Ruatoria, which hit a peak of over 167kmh last month, on June 20.

However, Pouawa was blasted by a gust reaching 173.8kmh in November 2018 — the fiercest wind of the past six years.

Meanwhile, the work of repairing weather damage to the region’s roads goes on, with every bad turn in the weather adding some new work even as the list is being reduced.

As of yesterday there were 53 road restrictions in place, with the Gisborne District Council website showing 17 of those as closures.

One urgent job was completed on Tuesday — the cutting and clearing of dangerous trees overhanging State Highway 2, between Te Karaka  and Otoko, leading to the Waioeka Gorge.

On Monday and Tuesday, the highway was closed for the work to be carried out, with a convoy allowed through one way at midday, and the opposite direction half an hour later.