Wettest summer on record for Napier and other stunning stats revealed in Niwa summary

Evacuations from Venables Avenue in Napier after Cyclone Gabrielle. The city received over 600 per cent of its normal rainfall for February. Photo / Paul Taylor

Napier had its wettest summer on record as revealed in a Niwa summary that highlights how the rain has defined summer and the month of February in particular for the North Island.

Niwa describes the rainfall in February as “exceptional”, with Napier having its third wettest month since its records began.

The city received over 600 per cent of its normal rainfall for February - 45 per cent of what its annual normal rainfall is.

The highest one-day rainfall recorded at a Niwa station was 316mm at Tūtira on February 13.

It was the second wettest summer on record for the North Island as a whole.

Niwa said that it was not only wet but also warm with it being the third warmest summer on record, characterised by higher-than-normal air pressure observed to the east and south of New Zealand, with lower-than-normal air pressure to the north and west, all typical of La Niña summers.

“This resulted in more easterly and northeasterly winds than usual, drawing in warm and humid air from the tropics and sub-tropics,” the summary said.

“This partly explains why persistently wet and cloudy weather was experienced in northern and eastern parts of both Islands, with sunnier and drier conditions in the west and south of both islands.”

The summary said a warmer atmosphere can hold more water vapour, which leads to heavier rainfall totals.

“Niwa scientists are contributing to an attribution study on the influence that climate change had on Gabrielle. More details will likely become available in the next month or two.”