A Civil Defence centre has been set up in Auckland overnight after intense thunderstorms sparked “significant flooding” across the city.
Video / NZ Herald
MetService has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for Auckland, following heavy downpours across parts of the region over the past few hours.
Areas east of a line from Kaukapakapa to Waiuku (which covers most of the urban areas of Waitākere, North Shore, Auckland Central and South Auckland), may experience downpours of 25 to 30 mm per hour and total accumulations of 50 to 60 mm over 3 to 4 hours.
The line of thunderstorms, connected to ex-tropical Cyclone Tam, was moving very slowly east and conditions may clear in western areas from 1am Saturday.
Wild weather in Auckland appeared to set off fire alarms at the Cordis hotel in the CBD, sending guests out into the rain. Photo / Isaac Davison
Meterologist Alain Baillie said 26.5 millimetres of rain was recorded at Mahurangi, in northern Auckland, between 10pm and 11pm.
About 21 millimetres was recorded at Whenuapai Airport in the hour leading to midnight.
Continued heavy rainfall is expected overnight and may lead to localised flash flooding in parts of Auckland.
It comes off the back of days of wild weather following Ex-Cyclone Tam, which has left thousands still without power and damaged roads and other infrastructure.
Waimauku resident Brya Wallace said the first wave of Friday night’s storm rolled in at about 10pm.
“I was actually playing a video game on my computer and could hear the thunder through my headset,” she said.
“My family and I were watching it for about an hour as it went from about 16km away, by counting the seconds, to overhead and passed overhead.”
Lightning striking the Sky Tower during the storm that hit Auckland. Photo / Vishal Umashankar
The storm lasted for at least an hour, maybe even an hour and a half, Wallace said.
“There were a couple of thunderous booms that shook the whole house. There was one I wish I recorded that sounded almost alien as it reverberated through the air before descending into a satisfying clap that shook the house.”
MetService currently has no weather warnings in place for Auckland.
