Anzac Day weather: Cold, clear dawn for many as Northland rain lingers

Anzac Day commemorations are set to have an icy, clear start for many, while the threat of heavy rain continues for some.

As dawn services kick off, the far south and Far North can expect to face a dose of rain, MetService meteorologist Paris Marshall told the Herald.

Meanwhile, several locations across the country dropped to chilly lows near freezing overnight, creating frosty dawn service conditions.

After a week of turbulent weather across the North Island, multiple alerts remain in place this morning, including an orange heavy rain warning for eastern Northland south of Kawakawa until 9am.

A heavy rain watch will also remain in place in Northland south of Kaitaia until 9am.

Anzac Day commemorations are set to have an icy, clear start for many, while the threat of heavy rain continues for some. Photo / MetService

Roads across northern Auckland and Coromandel were blocked by fallen trees and slips yesterday as heavy rain began to bear down.

Half a dozen properties were evacuated, and people were urged to avoid freshly devastated areas.

One man who was woken to what sounded like thunder as the hillside behind him collapsed onto his Waiwera property said his neighbour was “lucky not to be pinned to his bed” when a tree tumbled through his roof.

Anzac dawn service forecast

Marshall said most of the country was set to have favourable Anzac Day weather.

She said after a wild week in Wellington, today was forecast to be “Welly on a good day”.

“Definitely for the majority of the North Island, it’s going to be quite nice and for the upper and central South Island,” Marshall said.

However, rain would linger in Northland, she said with the heaviest rainfall expected until 9am.

Marshall said Paihia, Kaitaia and Russell will likely experience the longest stretch of rain, which isn’t expected to clear until the latter part of the day.

She said down south, Milford, Clutha and Central Otago were expected to be “a bit cloudy with a few showers for most of the day”.

“It might be a bit muggy for the morning [during] the dawn service for them, but it will start to look quite nice at least for the rest of the day,” she said.

Anzac Day commemorations are set to have an icy, clear start for many. Photo / George Heard

Marshall said Twizel was expected to record the coldest overnight temperature, dropping to -1C. In the Wairarapa, Masterton was forecast to dip to 0C, while Dannevirke was expected to reach a low of 1C.

“They are at risk of potential frost. So it will be quite a crisp morning for them,” Marshall said.

She said a warmer air mass over the far south meant that while it was a chilly night for most, temperatures would still climb during the day.

Dunedin is forecast to hit 22C, about 5C warmer than what’s typical for this time of year.

What is in store for the rest of the long weekend?

Marshall said the remainder of the long weekend was expected to be clear for most.

“For the most part, people will have blue skies, which is quite nice ... Just the far south and the Far North continue to have a little bit of cloud,” she said.

Marshall said “some speedy winds” were also expected down south.

MetService meteorologist John Law said for the final day of the long weekend, high pressure would stay in charge.

“Monday continues the settled theme for most regions,” Law said.

“There will be a few showers pushing into Southland and parts of the West Coast, but for many, especially those recently affected by severe weather, it will be a welcome break,” he said.