Low weather system packing a punch this evening, bringing heavy rain and strong winds to many

Dust off the old raincoat and umbrella, wet weather is set to pack a punch tomorrow, adding insult to the already nasty Monday blues.

Strong winds and further rain will hammer much of the nation as a low from the Tasman Sea moves over the country tonight and early tomorrow.

Parts of Auckland have been thrashed by the wind, with some pockets of the city losing power as a result.

In Glenfield on the North Shore, a crash has damaged a power pylon, resulting in an electricity outage.

Emergency services and Vector crews are at the scene trying to restore power in the area but the weather is affecting their efforts.

Pictures supplied to the Herald show the pylon crumbled at its base with debris scattered around it but the pylon is also snapped about halfway up.

Damage caused by the crash. Photo / Supplied

Elsewhere, power is out in the Sea View Rd, Onetangi area of Waiheke Island. One resident emailed the Herald to say they saw a huge flash and then the power went out.

Vector's chief network officer, Andre Botha, said its objective is to restore power as quickly as possible while ensuring the safety of crews and the public.

"We remind people to stay away from damaged electrical equipment and report issues by phoning us on 0508 VECTOR," Botha said.

"In the event that your power goes out, you can keep up to date with restoration work relevant to your specific address through our Outage Centre, available on vector.co.nz/outages".

"With the strong winds set to continue into the evening our objective is to remain on alert to the conditions while continuing to respond to pockets of outages spread around the region, from Warkworth to Manurewa."

Wild weather is hampering efforts to get power restored. Photo / Supplied

After a settled week, strong winds and heavy rain have thumped the nation today with MetService issuing a number of severe weather warnings.

Tomorrow night, adding an extra layer on the bed won't go amiss with the eastbound low to drag cooler air over the country behind it.

In Auckland alone, temperatures on Monday night will plummet to a teeth-shattering 7C.

Mt Taranaki, the ranges of Westland south of Otira and northwest Nelson have all received heavy rain warnings, with more than 90mm expected.

Winds getting stronger up north. Gusts of over 80km/h recorded in parts of Northland and Auckland in the last hour. Warning and watch details here https://t.co/qHyE5zhh6X Here is the 2pm Satellite image. ^SG pic.twitter.com/EFPu05fdae

— MetService (@MetService) May 12, 2019

North to northeast gales are also likely ahead of the moving front over much of northern and central New Zealand, plus the Chatham Islands.

As the low moves away to the east tomorrow, a period of strong cooler southwesterlies will be brought to many places over the country.

However, from Tuesday, westerlies are set to develop over much of New Zealand as another front starts moving north over western areas.

Last week, temperatures were warmer than average for May due to a predominant northerly flow, MetService meteorologist Stephen Glassey said.

"This cooler westerly regime should dominate our weather for the rest of the week, bringing changeable conditions to western areas," Glassey said.

"This week should be noticeably cooler with temperatures returning to what is normally expected in May."

Monday's forecast

Whangarei: A few morning showers, then increasing fine spells. Strong southwest easing from afternoon. High 20C, Low 9C.

Auckland: A few showers clearing morning, then increasing fine spells. Strong southwest easing from afternoon. 19C, 7C.

Tauranga: Showers easing morning, then becoming fine early afternoon. Strong southwesterly easing. 20C, 7C.

Hamilton: Showers easing morning, then clearing by early afternoon. Strong southwesterly easing. 18C, 3C.

Napier: Showers, more frequent mid-morning with a strong southwest change, then clearing afternoon and winds easing. 20C, 4C.

New Plymouth: Showers gradually clearing morning, becoming fine afternoon. Strong southwesterlies, easing from midday. 18C, 7C.

Wellington: Rain turning to showers early morning with a gale southerly change, gusting 100km​/​h in exposed places. Clearing afternoon with winds easing. 16C, 9C.

Nelson: Morning cloud and early showers, then fine. Southwesterlies easing morning. 17C, 8C.

Greymouth: Chance early shower, then partly cloudy. Brisk southwesterlies gradually easing. 16C, 7C.

Christchurch: Early morning rain, then fine. Strong southerlies, gradually dying out. 15C, 2C.

Queenstown: Morning cloud, then fine. Southerlies dying out evening. 12C, 3C.

Dunedin: Cloudy periods, isolated morning showers. Strong southwesterlies, gradually easing. 12C, 7C.

Invercargill: Cloudy periods, chance morning or afternoon shower. Southerlies dying out. 12C, 6C.