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Cyclone Vaianu remains on its path towards us with impacts from Saturday evening
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The Bay of Plenty and Rotorua Strong Wind Warning has been upgraded to Red with the strongest winds expected on Sunday.
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Red Strong Wind Warnings remain in place for the Coromandel and Great Barrier Island from Saturday night through Sunday
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Orange Wind and Rain Warnings and Yellow
Watches cover the North Island
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Orange Heavy Rain Warning is in place for eastern Marlborough
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The combination of damaging winds, heavy rain and coastal inundation makes this a multi-hazard, potentially life-threatening event.
At 1pm the centre of Cyclone Vaianu remained almost 500 km to the north of New Zealand but the effects of the system are already being seen as high cloud streams across the North Island. Winds are also starting to increase around the North Island off our northern coasts with gust of more than 110km/h reported at Mokohinau Island and Great Mercury Island.
As Cyclone Vaianu continues to move closer to New Zealand, winds are set to strengthen, and Strong Wind Warnings and Watches cover the North Island, starting from Saturday evening, and the Chatham Islands from Sunday evening. A Red Strong Wind Warning is in place for the Coromandel and Great Barrier Island where severe gales are possible from early Sunday morning and gusts of 130km/h.
During Saturday afternoon, the Strong Wind Warning across the Bay of Plenty and Rotorua was also
The combination of damaging winds, heavy rain and coastal inundation makes this a multi-hazard, potentially life-threatening event. The locations of the most severe impacts associated with Cyclone Vaianu, such as power outages, falling trees, flooding, slips, road closures and isolated communities, are highly dependent on the cyclone’s track.
MetService Meteorologist John Law says, “Cyclone Vaianu remains on its path towards us and is set to bring damaging winds, heavy
Clockwise spinning winds around Cyclone Vaianu mean that as the system moves across New Zealand the winds will be changing direction through Sunday. “The winds wrapping towards the centre of Vaianu mean that we will be seeing big changes in wind direction during Sunday, for spots like Auckland this will mean a swing from gale or even severe gale southeasterlies in the morning to severe gale westerlies in the afternoon.”
Heavy Rain Warnings and Watches have also been issued for many regions of the North Island and Marlborough. “For much of the North Island, Saturday will be a dry day before the rain arrives overnight. Thankfully, Vaianu looks to be a fleeting visitor with the rain clearing during Sunday.”
The combination of large swells and strong winds will also make for challenging sea conditions, especially around north and eastern facing coasts of the North Island. Take extra care around exposed coastal regions, especially at high tide.
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