Severe weather ahead

MetService has extended a severe weather watch across much of the central and lower North Island.

Wellington, Wairarapa and Taupo have been placed on the watch as a front bringing more wind and rain comes in off the Tasman and a new front develops off the Wairarapa coast this afternoon.

MetService said the position of the new low forming off the Wairarapa was still uncertain, but it looked like the main "threat area" for wind and rain would be north of Canterbury.

"Just where the low develops will determine which areas receive the heaviest rainfall and strongest coastal winds."

MetService said rain was likely to become heavy near the eastern hills of Wellington, in Wairarapa and about the Kaikoura coast overnight and also again in the eastern hills of Wellington and Wairarapa on Thursday.

The severe weather watch for heavy rain in Northland, Auckland, Coromandel Peninsula Waikato and Canterbury had been lifted.

Meteorologist Daniel Corbett said the MetService had been tracking a system for the past few weeks, which would slowly be coming together in the coming days.

Two troughs had been moving in at the top of the North Island and the bottom of the South Island, bringing high winds and rain.

The weather was expected to linger until at least tomorrow, and then peter out by the weekend.

MetService was advising people stayed on top of weather warnings.

- © Fairfax NZ News