More heavy rain is set to fall on the West Coast of the South Island after flooding and slips shut key routes in Grey District and Buller.
However, Grey District’s mayor Tania Gibson says they’ve come out of the downpour quite lightly.
The rain drenched the Grey District and Buller on Friday, causing flooding and slips.
Emergency operations centres were activated in the Grey and Buller districts, with the Grey District Council advising people in flood-prone areas that they might need to evacuate if they feel uncertain.
An orange heavy rain warning remains in place in Buller until Sunday morning.
MetService says Buller can expect between 130mm and 150mm of rain on top of what has already fallen – and it’s also warning of possible thunderstorms.
Gibson says short, sharp downpours like this in the region happen a couple of times a year, and they are well-practised at dealing with them.
She says the cleanup will mostly be slips and debris from flooding.
State Highway 7 north of Stillwater to Ngahere and State Highway 7 between Stillwater and Dobson have reopened after flooding receded, but drivers are warned to remain cautious.
State Highway 73 is now clear between Arthur’s Pass village and Kumara Junction. It was shut earlier due to surface flooding and slips.
NZ Transport Agency has also lifted the wind warning for State Highway 7 between Waipara and Springs Junction, including over Lewis Pass, in Canterbury.
However, there’s a strong wind watch for the Canterbury High Country from 9pm Saturday until 11am on Sunday.
An orange heavy rain warning has also been issued for the Tasman District west of Takaka through until 9am on Sunday.
Around 130mm to 150mm of rain on top of what has already fallen can be expected – and MetService is also warning of possible thunderstorms.
There are heavy rain watches in place for the Nelson Lakes and the Buller District about and south of Westport until 9am Sunday.
The Tararua Range is also subject to a heavy rain warning until 6pm on Sunday.
Up to 250mm of rain may fall on what of what has already been experienced accompanied by thunder, MetService says.
Wellington, Wairarapa and the Tararua District may be in for some strong nor’west winds approaching gale level from 10pm Saturday until 1pm on Sunday.
Meanwhile, it was a warm and cloudy start for most other areas with showers persisting throughout the day, MetService said on X.
Eastern regions were the exception with clear, sunny skies expected. By 7am Gisborne and Napier had reached 18 degrees Celsius while Kaikōura was on 20C.
rnz.co.nz
