MetService has issued a heavy rain warning for Northland for 24 hours from 9am Saturday to 9am Sunday, for eastern parts of Northland, with north of Whangārei expected to be hardest hit.
Northlanders should expect 100-120mm of rain to accumulate about the hills, with lesser amounts elsewhere. Peak rates of 10-15mm/hour are expected late Saturday afternoon and evening.
The lifeguarding season at most of New Zealand's patrolled beaches will begin on Labour Weekend, and Covid-19 restrictions mean patrols will return to the beach in a different manner, Surf Life Saving Northern Region CEO Matt Williams said.
"With the Auckland and Waikato region still under Covid-19 lockdown at level 3, patrolling arrangements and management of the public attending the regions' beaches will be subject to strict protocols. At this stage most of our clubs will have a presence on the beach as long as we do not move back into level 4," he said.
"The recognisable yellow and red flags may not be present at all patrol locations, and some clubs will only provide an observational patrol due to limited patrol numbers. If lifeguards consider beach conditions to be too dangerous for themselves and beach users, there may be a 'red flag' beach which means 'no swimming'."
Williams acknowledges the tremendous effort and courage volunteers are showing to perform their duties despite Covid-19 restrictions making lifesaving operations more complicated.
To prevent any spread of the virus among volunteers, patrol operations will mirror a Covid-19-affected environment with limited patrol numbers, volunteer-only access to clubrooms, no overnighting at clubhouses and limited public contact.
"Our role is to ensure the public are safe at the beach, but our first priority is to ensure our guards are also safe. It's mandatory for our guards to wear masks and adhere to social distancing where possible but clearly, for some rescues a mask is impractical,'' he said.
''If members of the public need to engage with our guards they should approach them much as you would a supermarket worker – keeping a 2m distance and wearing a mask."
Williams says use of patrol flags to mark a safe swimming location will continue where possible, and they are relying on the co-operation of the public to maintain social distancing between the flags.
"It's important we all work together to take practical steps around numbers at the beach and safe distancing in the water; if this is not managed, lifeguards may intervene by restricting swimming numbers or closing beach services for safety reasons."
He says beachgoers should be rigorous in using their Covid tracer phone apps.
"Most beaches will have QR codes at the reserve or outside the surf club, or the location can be entered manually. We don't encourage people to travel to remote or isolated locations during high alert levels but if they are somewhere where there are no guards and someone is in trouble in the water, they should call 111 and ask for lifeguard emergency services.
"We understands that lockdown has provided ample opportunity for the public to purchase new toys or tools for recreational use and fully supports the public enjoying the coast in whatever way that is meaningful to them. This doesn't come without warning, however, to exercise caution and make sure you know your limits and are well prepared before heading out."
