Northland weather: Meteorologist explains pink sky phenomenon ahead of Cyclone Vaianu

Pink skies light up Maungakaramea before Cyclone Vaianu's arrival at the weekend. Photo / Karen Tasker

Kiwis in the North Island marvelled at the pink skies before Cyclone Vaianu’s arrival on Sunday.

Many were reminded of the vibrant sunset seen before Cyclone Gabrielle hit in February 2023.

The comparison begged the question, why did our skies blush so deeply before the cyclone?

MetService meteorologist John Law said the phenomenon was a classic story of high clouds coming in before the weather system arrived.

“Imagine that cloud is high in the sky ... as the sun sets over in the west, it illuminates the sky with the setting rays.”

Law said that when adverse weather moves in, you often see high, wispy cirrus clouds first, followed by thicker cloud layers that sit lower as the system gets closer.

The sight is a clue that worsening weather is on the way, as experienced over the weekend.

Northland’s district leaders were relieved on Sunday to discover the region was spared any major damage after Cyclone Vaianu struck overnight.

The ex-tropical system brought winds up to 110km/h, rainfall of more than 100mm in some areas, and waves topping 10m to Northland.

Whangārei received more than a month’s worth of rain on Saturday and Sunday. The average for April was 96.6mm but 106mm fell over the weekend.

The severe weather conditions caused more than 1400 homes to lose power, most in the Far North. As of today, power to those areas had been restored.

All of Northland’s state highways were able to open on Sunday after issues with slips, flooding and fallen trees.

Two small slips caused the Brynderwyns to drop to a single lane in multiple places.

State Highway 1 at the Mangamuka Gorge was proactively closed before Cyclone Vaianu’s arrival.

Far North Mayor Moko Tepania said yesterday no local roads had been impacted by the cyclone but some remained damaged from an earlier storm.

Some 99 local routes were damaged when extreme weather struck the district on March 25 and 26.

In Kaipara, two roads remain flooded as of this afternoon. Vehicles are unable to pass through Child Rd and Paearata Rd.

Arcadia Rd, Batley Rd, Bickerstaffe Rd, Bob Taylor Rd, Central Rd, Franklin Rd, Houto Rd and Mason Rd were all passable despite slips or flooding.

According to Whangārei District Council, 22 local roads were down to either a single lane or width restrictions as of 2pm today.

One local road remained closed, with Russell Rd shut in a January storm because of the historical Helena Bay Hill overslip.

Brodie Stone covers crime and emergency for the Northern Advocate. She has spent most of her life in Whangārei and is passionate about delving into issues that matter to Northlanders and beyond.