'Moon man' Ken Ring gets it wrong

Self-proclaimed weather guru Ken Ring is wildly astray in his January predictions for the South Island hydro lakes region, in his 2013 weather almanac.

His summary for January, based on lunar patterns, says "the driest regions for the South Island for January may be the hydro lakes".

But Environment Canterbury flood controller Tony Henderson said the 500mm of rain in the Waitaki and Rangitata river catchments over four days was "probably the most we've had over the summer in several decades".

As a result, Meridian Energy is conducting controlled spills from the Pukaki and Benmore hydro lakes to counter the run-off from heavy rain that has fallen in the headwaters.

Mr Ring's predictions also missed the mark on the West Coast, with no mention of the torrential downpours that caused severe flooding and slips which closed road and rail links last week. In fact, he predicted a fine day across the West Coast on January 2, when the storm was at its peak, but he did expect heavy rain at Bruce Bay the next day.

- The Greymouth Star