Metservice forecasts damp end to wet Hawke's Bay month

The surface flooding which came with heavy rain in Hawke's Bay less than three weeks ago. Photo / NZME

One of Hawke's Bay's wettest Februaries is about to get even wetter with even more rain forecast for most of the rest of the month.

As some dark clouds lowered ominously over parts of the region on Thursday afternoon, national weather agency MetService was forecasting showery and cloudy weather from Mahia in the north to Dannevirke in the south through the weekend and into Monday – the last day of the shortest month of the year.

It was not expected to bring more than about 20mm to Napier or other areas on the plains, and probably no more than about 50mm into the hills, but the region's had a rare dollop.

In the year to date to Wednesday night, Hawke's Bay Airport had had 266.8mm (compared with the 30 year Jan 1-Feb 23 average of 104mm), Hastings had had 165.2mm (average 100mm), Takapau Plains had had 233mm (average 106mm) and Mahia had had 249.6mm (average 134mm).

MetService meteorologist Robb Kerr emphasised the averages are a combination of the dry month and the wet months, but no year in recent years in Hawke's Bay has "come close" to the rainfall that's been experienced in the start of 2022.

The agency says March 1 is the "official" start of autumn, with a "mixed bag" of weather for the last weekend of summer, which might be of some comfort to the sporting perplexed with summer-sport cricket scheduled to extend into April and winter-sport rugby already under way at the professional level and local clubs stuff scheduled to start in mid-March.

Kerr said the weekend starts with a broad ridge of high pressure over southern and central areas of New Zealand, bringing largely settled conditions, while a showery southeast flow affects eastern and far northern parts of the North Island.

A weakening cold front sweeps over the eastern half of the South Island on Saturday, then moves onto the southern half of the North Island, including Hawke's Bay.

"There won't be much respite from the showers around Gisborne and Hawke's Bay this weekend, until after the front later on Sunday," he said.

The front will bring cooler temperatures and a period of rain to the eastern half of the country from Saturday morning, starting in the south, and likely to affect the cricket test match against South Africa in Christchurch for a time Saturday afternoon.