Whanganui 5C over average July temperature on Thursday, followed by 70km/h wind gusts on Friday

A daytime high 5C higher than average for July was recorded in Whanganui. Photo / Bevan Conley

Temperatures 5C higher than average for the time of year have been followed by strong wind gusts in an erratic 24 hours of weather for Whanganui.

MetService meteorologist Ngaire Wotherspoon said the weather station in Whanganui City recorded a daytime high of 19C on Thursday.

The average temperature for the region in July is around 14C.

“It looks like it was really quite sunny in the afternoon and the winds weren’t too strong, even at the airport,” Wotherspoon said.

The city was also sheltered from whatever winds were blowing through.

This didn’t last, however, as wind speeds picked back up in early on Friday morning. The weather station at Whanganui Airport recorded gusts of more than 70km/h.

Wotherspoon said this was due to the weather system causing heavy downpours of rain further north.

“We’ve got this really broad low that’s over the upper North Island right now and it’s bringing some really quite strong easterlies and heavy rain to those northern and eastern areas.

“The winds are really spreading across pretty much the whole North Island and upper South Island.”

The winds were expected to continue into the weekend with the Whanganui region included in a strong wind watch, with winds potentially getting as strong as 90km/h.

It was expected to be a cloudy two days, with showery periods expected on Saturday and Sunday. However, the region would miss the heavy rain expected for parts of the north and the east coast.

“It’s good to be in the west with this kind of system, at least rain-wise, although expect some pretty strong winds,” Wotherspoon said.

Temperatures would drop back to what was expected for this time of year, with daytime highs of 14C and overnight lows between 7C and 8C.

Finn Williams is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. He joined the Chronicle in early 2022 and regularly covers stories about business, events and emergencies. He also enjoys writing opinion columns on whatever interests him.