ALDEN WILLIAMS/Stuff
Heavy rain will hit Gisborne and Coromandel.
As regions across the country continue to recover from Cyclone Gabrielle, parts of the upper South Island and North Island are being warned to brace for more heavy rainfall.
MetService has issued a severe weather warning for some parts of the upper South Island and North Island, but it is the flood-ravaged areas of Gisborne and the Coromandel Peninsula that are most at risk.
“Surface flooding is not an unreasonable expectation as another complex trough is moving through the North Island,” said MetService meteorologist Alex Holden.
“It’s already very wet so this will only pile it up,” Holden said.
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From 3 a.m. Monday to 6 a.m. Tuesday, periods of heavy rain with a chance of thunderstorms will affect Gisborne heading north from Tolaga Bay.
“There is still some uncertainty as to whether the watch should be extended further south, but we predict most of the effects will be seen in northern areas,” Holden said.
The rain then moves on to the Coromandel Peninsula, with MetService issuing a heavy rain watch from 9 a.m. Monday to 3 a.m. Tuesday.
These rain watches are the result of a new tropical stratification in northeast New Zealand by Fiji, which MetService warns could develop into another cyclone.
“As things stand now, the new tropical low is sweeping us aside and hitting Gisborne and the Coromandel.
“It brings with it a rush of moist, warm air, which floods these parts of the country and whips up rainfall totals.”
Another cyclone forming would be tough news for those in affected regions Cyclone Gabrielle or by the flooding on Auckland’s birthday weekend.