Bay of Plenty forecast shows overnight temperatures set to drop, ‘wrap up’ warm for Anzac Day dawn services

People heading to Anzac Day dawn services tomorrow should “wrap up nice and warm” because overnight temperatures in the Bay of Plenty are set to plummet.

MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane said a southwesterly flow of wind was bringing cooler air to the Bay of Plenty tonight, with overnight temperatures of 7C in Tauranga and 2C in Rotorua expected.

Whakatāne will also be “pretty chilly” with a minimum of 3C expected.

“If people are heading to dawn services or being outside [during] those early morning hours, [it is] definitely a good idea to wrap up nice and warm because it will be a noticeably cold morning,” Makgabutlane said.

If Rotorua dropped to 2C overnight, it would “very likely” be the coldest temperature recorded in Rotorua so far this year. The previous coldest temperature was 2.8C, recorded at the end of March.

The daytime temperatures on Anzac Day would be about 18C or 19C in Tauranga and Whakatāne and about 15C in Rotorua.

Makgabutlane said temperatures would start to rise again along the coastal regions tomorrow night and Wednesday morning, with minimum temperatures rising towards double digits.

A minimum temperature of 14C was expected in Tauranga tomorrow night into Wednesday morning. Whakatāne would be about 9C and Rotorua about 11C.

The wintry weather was being caused by a cold front moving across the lower South Island late on Sunday.

Daytime temperatures from Wednesday would be in the low 20s along the coast, staying “fairly static” for the rest of the week. Daytime temperatures in Rotorua would be in the mid-teens, she said.

Looking ahead to next week, Makgabutlane said there would be “warmer-than-average” temperatures again.

Last week, MetService said the Bay of Plenty was experiencing warmer-than-usual temperatures for the time of year.

“I think the airflow, while this week is more from the south, southwest, I think next week we are expecting that wind flow to be more from the north which does bring that warmer air over the country,” Makgabutlane said.