Showers forecast for much of NZ, wet week ahead for Auckland

Intermittent showers are forecast for almost the entire country today.
A heavy rain watch for parts of Gisborne and the Bay of Plenty was set until 9am. Heavy falls, squally thunderstorms and hailstorms were expected in Ōpōtiki before then, ahead of the weather turning partly cloudy.
Auckland also has a cloudy forecast for Sunday, with a few showers about the west of the city possible in the afternoon. MetService is predicting a 21C high and 12C low tonight.
Labour Day will be mainly fine in the City of Sails. However, MetService says there is a chance of a shower and wind could be strong later in the day. Monday’s high is tipped to reach 18C and the overnight low is 12C.
And the wet weather is expected to last throughout the week. Thursday is the only day for which MetService has forecast fine conditions in Auckland.
The best spots around the country on Sunday include Kaitāia, Whangārei, Rotorua, Tauranga, Gisborne and Napier, which all should remain mainly fine with some cloudy periods and a shower or two in the evening.
It comes after a low-pressure system soaked the country yesterday and gales battered the lower North Island on Thursday. Snow has also fallen in the last day, prompting warnings for motorists on mountain roads this morning.
Several West Coasters evacuated their homes yesterday and holidaymakers found themselves stranded as they encountered flooded roads and highways.
West Coast Emergency Management group manager Claire Brown said yesterday: “There is a lot of surface flooding in and around the communities, with a small number of local and state highway road closures.”
Sunday’s emojicast:         🌤️           🌤️             🌤️🌦            🌦🌦🌦🌦         🌧️🌧️🌦🌦             🌧️🌧️🌤️                   🌧️🌤️                      🌤️              🌧️🌤️          🌧️🌧️        🌧️☁️☁️                   🌧️      🌧️☁️  🌧️☁️🌧️☁️☁️🌧️   🌧️
Earlier, on Thursday and into Friday, slips and power cuts plagued the lower North Island after strong winds battered the area.
Around 350 homes in the Wellington region had power cuts after strong winds struck overnight.
The low-pressure system responsible for the bad weather is forecast to weaken further and move off the country by Monday, but showers may linger in western parts of both islands.

Police and New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), meanwhile, have urged motorists to keep themselves and others safe this Labour weekend – after six people died on the roads during the holiday last year.
“Holiday traffic means there will be congestion on highways in and out of the main urban centres on Friday and Monday. We’re asking everyone to make safe choices to protect themselves and others,” NZTA said.
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