Severe thunderstorm warning issued for Far North, flash flooding possible

Author: NZ Herald,
Publish Date: Wed, 12 Aug 2026, 11:21am

A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for the Far North, with MetService warning of very heavy rain and possible flash flooding.

Weather radar detected severe thunderstorms near Kaitāia, Herekino and Broadwood at about 3.30pm.

The storms were moving east and expected near Broadwood and Victoria Valley by about 4pm, before reaching Rāwene, Mangamuka, Broadwood and the Maungataniwha Range about 4.30pm.

MetService warned the thunderstorms were expected to bring very heavy rain, which could cause surface or flash flooding around streams, gullies and urban areas and make driving “extremely hazardous”.

The warning is currently in force until 4.30pm.

A heavy rain watch has also been in force for eastern areas of the upper North Island since this morning, covering a 15-hour period of wet weather.

The watch, which came into effect at 10am today, covers northern and eastern Northland and Auckland north of Ōrewa, including Great Barrier Island, until 1am tomorrow.

Meteorologist Ashlee Parkes told the Herald a “quite complex system” is moving in from the west.

“There’s going to be scattered falls through most northern and western exposed areas as this front begins to push its way over,” she said.

In Northland and northern Auckland, the heaviest rain is expected from late morning through the afternoon, before easing in the evening.

Meanwhile, Tairāwhiti-Gisborne through to Wairarapa will start the day cloudy with light rain before fine spells in the afternoon.

As the front pushes south, Westland and Fiordland are also in for heavy falls.

“Our lovely Southern Alps across the South Island are going to do a pretty good job of blocking the worst of that rain and keep the heaviest stuff in the west,” Parkes said.

Marlborough south to Dunedin can expect a partly cloudy day with “light spots of rain on and off”, Parkes said.

A “quite significant northerly wind” will develop ahead of the front, becoming strong in exposed places, particularly around the eastern South Island coast.

By midnight, the front is expected to stretch from Auckland towards Westland and Fiordland.

Warm weather on the way

The system is also set to bring unusually warm conditions to some parts of the country.

Kaikōura is forecast to reach a toasty high of 18C tomorrow, with Parkes saying temperatures would be a “bit warmer than we would expect for this time of year”.

“We do often get these situations where, as these fronts cross the country, we get a northwesterly flow in behind, and they can be quite warm.”

The front will continue tracking southeast tomorrow, with a low risk of heavy rain in Coromandel and Bay of Plenty.

Wet weather is expected to linger across northern areas through tomorrow and into Friday as another feature draws “warm moist air from the subtropics” over New Zealand.