An active front is approaching New Zealand from the Tasman Sea and MetService forecasters are warning thunderstorms embedded within it may be severe.
MetService has today issued a thunderstorm watch for Auckland, Northland, Great Barrier Island, Coromandel Peninsula and Bay of Plenty.
WeatherWatch.co.nz head weather analyst Philip Duncan says the front may deliver a few lightning bolts to Auckland but doubts it will be a repeat of Sunday night. “I think the west coast of Northland will be the most exposed to the thunderstorms, but basically most of the upper North Island will be vulnerable to the unstable weather”.
“The lightning tracker is already picking up a significant amount of flashes out at sea.
Mr Duncan says another front on Saturday night may also bring thunderstorms to northern New Zealand.
The lightning tracker at WeatherWatch.co.nz has already clocked up over 2250 strikes out in the Tasman Sea today.
MetService says the thunderstorm watch is “an alert to the potential development of severe thunderstorms along the front, affecting mainly coastal areas with with damaging wind gusts and possible tornadoes”.
Check our free and live Lightning Tracker here.
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Ben on 2/07/2009 11:17am
Wind getting heavier down here, light showers, nothing serious yet keeping an eye on the lightning detector.
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Laura on 2/07/2009 9:48am
had a few showers, but nothing really heavy. No lightening or thunder yet.
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CHDAVISNZ on 2/07/2009 4:43am
Hi WeatherWatch Team,
Turning really dark and black out there at the moment here in the Far North ) as at 16:33hrs with a NE wind – steady light rain falling now.
Will update accordingly if there is anything significant weather related to report – and hopefully there will be no powercuts.
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