Weather mayhem: The worst is over, says MetService

Sunday, 8 December 2019

A thunderstorm lit up the skies over the lower North Island on Saturday night.

The worst is over and the Wellington region can look forward to a period of settled weather.

MetService meteorologist Paul Ngamanu said at 6pm on Sunday that the next 12 hours should see the end of the storm that has caused mayhem over the previous 36 hours.

He predicted that Monday should be fine and Wellingtonians can look forward to a good week.

The intensity of the storm was unusual for this time of year and he said it had been an exciting weekend for meteorologists.

The heaviest rainfall had been in Wainuomata where 119mm fell in a 24 hours period. Wellington recorded 1400 lightning strikes and nationally there had been more than 100,000

**READ MORE:

Flooding at Greys St, Pukerua Bay, following a thunderstorm.

* Thunderstorm watch: 100,000 lightning strikes across the country

* Stranded travellers and residents hunkering down in flooded Rangitata**

* Have you been affected by the weather? Email your newstips, photos and video to newstips@stuff.co.nz

Fire and Emergency said there was flooding, a times threatening homes, in Porirua, as well as Hutt Valley suburbs of Silverstream and Stokes Valley.

Wellington Water spokesman Alex van Paassen warned that storm water was mixing with some wastewater and was flooding on to streets earlier on Sunday, most notably in Porirua.

Wellington and Lower Hutt were also affected in what was being described as a one-in-40-year rain event.

The overflow was designed to happen as the other option was waters backing up into homes.

SLIPS AND FLOODING

Flooding problems worsened - most notably in parts of Porirua, Lower Hutt, and Wellington - when high tides making it harder for water to drain away.

Properties in Porirua and the Hutt Valley have been flooded, with some homeowners facing significant clean-ups.

Flooding and slips caused delays on some of the region's major roads early in the day.

A slip near Silverstream blocked northbound lanes on State Highway 2, State Highway 58 was closed due to a minor slip and SH1 through Mana and Plimmerton Roundabout was flooded.

NZ Transport Agency systems manager Mark Owen said crews had been working hard all day in challenging conditions, clearing and repairing affected areas, with the state highway network in the region now open, with the exception of SH 58.

Traffic backed up along State Highway 2.

State Highway 58 remains closed, between Pauatahanui Roundabout in Whitby through to SH 2 (Haywards).

Late in the afternoon flooding, as heavy rain returned, a tree was blocking the northbound lane of SH 2 at Silverstream, prior to the intersection with Fergusson Drive. There was also surface flooding on SH2 near Petone and SH1 near Pukerua Bay, NZTA said.

The agency also advised drivers taking SH2 over Remutaka Hill to take extra care due to high winds, however by 4pm the gusts had eased.

In the Wellington suburb of Karori, a slippery road caused by the rain was blamed for a car that flipped on its roof.

Emergency services were called to Chaytor St - the main road to Karori - at around lunchtime on Sunday.

A police officer at the scene said it appeared the car slipped on the slick surface, hit the pavement, and flipped. There were no serious injuries.

In Porirua, council contractors worked during the morning to clear small slips around the inlet, with Mana Esplanade, Grays Rd and Pāuatahanui among the most affected areas.

Adverse weather conditions also meant some train services in the capital were being replaced by buses, Metlink said.

'This disruption to services has been caused by power outages that have been caused by the adverse weather causing damage to a number of substations.

'The power was switched off to all of the network due to safety concerns while traction workers assessed the damage,' a Metlink alert read.

Trees in Akatarawa in Upper Hutt and outside Martinborough in Wairarapa caught fire after being struck by lightning early on Sunday. It was not certain whether a house fire in Sinclair St, Upper Hutt, was caused by lightning, Fire and Emergency New Zealand said.

Police have also delayed Sunday's Porirua firearms collection event at the Kennel Club for a day due to the weather.

'Because of flooding causing road closures, many of our staff are unable to get to the event to man it,' a police statement said.

Thunderstorm warnings were issued for areas across central New Zealand as a humid northwest flow slowly moved across the region. They were lifted on Monday morning.

The Rangitata River Mouth is flowing fast and is taking dirt out to sea a long way off the coastline.

MetService issued severe thunderstorm warnings for Waitomo, Taumarunui, Taranaki, Wanganui, Taihape, Manawatu, Horowhenua, Kapiti Coast, Wellington, the ranges of Wairarapa, as well as Nelson and Marlborough.

Whitby, near Porirua, was hit by lightning strikes around 5am on Sunday morning.

Heavy rain warnings were also in place in Taranaki and the wider Wellington region, with heavy rain up to 150mm.

The weather warnings came after thunderstorms caused flooding near Rangitata on Saturday, forcing campers to evacuate and the Rangitata River banks burst.

The South Island's West Coast was hammered by heavy rain and thunderstorms, causing power outages, slips and road closures.

MetService said the Quartz Hill wind farm near Makara in Wellington recorded 281mm of rain in 24 hours to 7am on Sunday, while Porirua received 63mm, and there was 55mm in Wainuiomata and 48mm in Trentham.