Severe gales possible for Tararua and parts of Hawke's Bay

A traffic warning on State Highway 2 at the southern end of the Takapau Plains. Photo / Warren Buckland

Winds approaching severe gales could hit the Tararua District and as far north as State Highway 5 in Hawke's Bay as a westerly storm blows through.

On Sunday, MetService issued a strong wind watch for Hawke's Bay south of Te Haroto and the Tararua District north of Pahiatua, mainly for inland areas east of the ranges.

The winds are likely to be at their strongest in the 17 hours from 4pm on Monday to 9am on Tuesday.

MetService meteorologist Dan Corrigan said the winds could reach up to 90 kilometres an hour, but would likely be sporadic - one part of Tararua may be blasted, while another may remain relatively calm.

They would be coming down off the Ruahine Range and Kaweka Range, making them tricky to predict.

"That's what we tend to see with these westerly to north-westerly flows over Hawke's Bay - they're quite hit and miss. But the strong wind watch is in place for the areas we expect to be affected, we just can't say exactly where will be most affected on the day."

Corrigan said a north-easterly front would likely bring rain to most on Monday morning, but it would clear to occasional showers before the north-westerlies blasted through.

Hastings and Napier are set to clear and warm up on Tuesday, hitting highs of 21 and 22C respectively - while up north, Wairoa will hit 20C.

Dannevirke, however, remains cooler - it's expecting just 15C on Tuesday, and a chilly 10C on Wednesday - with an overnight low of 0C.