*Our Monday Video is delayed a bit as we get more data to talk about Cyclone Gita. The next video will be ready by mid Monday afternoon*

Cyclone Gita, a severe cyclone north west of New Zealand, has begun it’s slow southern turn towards the Tasman Sea and will most likely reach New Zealand on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The storm will retain at least Category 1 strength as it comes in with damaging gale force winds near the centre and occasional damaging gusts further afield. Dangerous seas and very heavy rain also accompany the cyclone.

When it reaches New Zealand on Tuesday (at this stage) it will begin to morph into a new storm system – it makes being specific about severe weather in various regions difficult this far in advance, we expect much more detail in our Monday and Tuesday weather video updates.

This video was recorded on Friday Feb 16th and we expect changes in the precise tracking and intensity of the storm across this weekend – don’t forget WeatherWatch.co.nz will have rolling coverage about the cyclone over the weekend and across next week, so for additional updates beyond this video please go to our website or download our free weather app and follow the news tab.