Weather: Heavy showers, thunderstorms approach as strong winds buffet country

Southerly gusts are keeping temperatures from rising far above October averages, with Auckland likely to hit highs of about 16C and 10C lows from Tuesday through Thursday. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Heavy showers and thunderstorms are tipped to strike parts of New Zealand over the next two days, with strong winds set to continue buffeting the country into Tuesday evening.

The southerly gusts were keeping temperatures from rising far above October averages, with Auckland likely to hit highs of about 16C and 10C lows from Tuesday through Thursday.

The City of Sails will see fresh southwesterlies on Tuesday, a partly cloudy day with a few showers. The wind should ease by the evening. Wednesday should see a few showers, clearing to fine by the afternoon.

MetService issued a strong wind watch for several parts of the country from Monday to Tuesday morning, with severe gales possible in Hawke’s Bay and coastal Southland.

Rainfall for the first half of the week tends to come from the southwest which will keep the air cool but sheltered areas will see some clear skies.

On Friday the wind turns more northwest which will bump up the temperature but brings risk of heavy rain and strong winds. pic.twitter.com/a1EuUQbKy3

— MetService (@MetService) October 8, 2023

The burst of cool air brought in by the wind could dump fresh snow on several mountain passes where snowfall warnings have been issued, and could also push heavy showers and lightning up the country.

Later in the week, the wind direction should shift, which would “bump up” temperatures and bring more rain, MetService said in a social media post.

Auckland has a forecast high of 18C on Friday, a mostly cloudy day with isolated showers; while a cloudy Saturday could hit 19C with rain developing.

MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris said: “While temperatures might be running a little cool at first this week, it still looks like a large portion of the country will be able to find a decent dry window to get out and about, just might need to keep a windbreaker handy.”

Until the finer weather sets in, however, MetService’s road snowfall warnings for Lewis Pass and Porters Pass will continue through to 1am Wednesday.

Up to two centimetres of snow could settle on the two mountain passes of State Highway 7 and 73.

Ready for more windy weather this week?

While gusts are not expected to be as strong as previous weeks, at times it will still be quite windy.

🟡 gusts of 50+ km/h
🔴 gusts of 100+ km/h pic.twitter.com/uLjue0cPs7

— NIWA Weather (@NiwaWeather) October 8, 2023

The weather should remain consistent up and down the country, with Dunedin likely to hit 11C on a blustery Tuesday and 16C on cloudy Wednesday and Thursday.

Wellington has a forecast high of 16C for Tuesday, when showers could develop in the afternoon, dropping to 13C on a mainly-fine Wednesday before bouncing back to 17C on Thursday.

Christchurch’s forecast was the cream of the crop this week, with cloud developing on Tuesday, when temperatures could reach 13C, before jumping to 18C on Wednesday and further to 20C on Thursday.

Private forecaster Weather Watch called this week’s conditions “classic spring”.

Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.