Chilly weather to sweep North Island

Auckland could see showers today but should expect to be hit with the main band of wet weather tonight. Photo / iStock

Chilly weather, rain and gales are set to sweep the North Island today - after southern parts of the country saw gusts of up to 140km/h overnight.

A front was spreading north over the country today after lashing the South Island on Monday, MetService meteorologist Stephen Glassey said.

A warning was in place for heavy rain in Westland overnight, with Franz Josef receiving 150mm of rain in the last 24 hours.

Gales also battered parts of the country including Christchurch and the Wellington region, with the strongest gusts recorded at 140km/h in Castlepoint.

The blustery conditions were set to move north with the front today, Mr Glassey said - but they should be short-lived.

A warning is in place for the northwest gales to possibly become severe in Wairarapa and Hawkes Bay south of Hastings until Tuesday afternoon.

Auckland could see showers today but expect to be hit with the main band of wet weather tonight, he said.

"By midnight tonight it's probably going to have spread over the whole North Island. It's reaching Auckland this evening," he said.

"It's fairly brief. It's clearing the North Island reasonably early tomorrow morning, moving out to the east and then we're expecting another settled spell of weather during Wednesday and Thursday for most places."

Temperatures would take a dip following the front as southerly winds blow through, expected to hit Wellington after midday and move north.

Christchurch had already seen temperatures dropping from 15C to 9C as a result, Mr Glassey said.

Another front was expected to arrive in the South Island on Friday and Saturday, Mr Glassey said, but looked like it would weaken before reaching the North Island.

WeatherWatch analysts Aaron Wilkinson and Drew Chappell said the front should reach the North Island by Tuesday evening.

There was a low to moderate risk of thunderstorms about Buller and Taranaki as the weather system moves through, they said.

Main Centres Forecast:

• Whangarei: Fine spells today, chance shower. High 20C, low 13C. Rain clearing on Wednesday, then fine. High 20C, low 11C.

• Auckland: Today will see fine spells, morning showers. Evening rain. High 18C, low 13C. On Wednesday, rain clears, then fine. Southwest change. High 19C, low 10C.

• Hamilton: Drizzle, evening rain today. High 18C, low 11C. Wednesday will see rain clearing with southwest change. High 19C, low 7C.

• Tauranga: Cloud increases, rain at night. High 19C, low 12C. Rain clearing early on Wednesday, then fine. High 18C, low 11C.

• Wellington: Cloud today, with rain in the evening. High 16C, low 8C. Fine spells tomorrow, fresh northerly. High 14C, low 8C.

• Christchurch: Morning rain today, then cloudy. High 16C, low 6C. Tomorrow will be fine, cloudy periods. High 16C, low 4C.

• Dunedin: Occasional rain, clears morning then fine. High 13C, 6C. Fine tomorrow, cloud increasing. High 16C, low 9C.

Source: MetService