Officially the first week of autumn began this week and in many cases it was as warm as any week in February for a few locations.

Everything was in the mix this week, ranging from blue skies with little wind to howling nor’ easters and heavy rain.

Rain and wind buffeted northern and western parts of the nation on Thursday and Friday  with Cape Reinga clocking up gusts in excess of 150 kph. Localised heavy downpours caused a little damage to roofing and power lines, plus a few trees were blown down in the wild conditions.

Although the warnings were issued once again this week, some areas got the drenching they were expecting with severe winds while others were left wondering what all the fuss was about.

Temperatures on the whole were average to above average  for the time of year and that was more noticeable at night. Apart from a a couple of cool mornings at the beginning of the week in southern and central regions, the northern part of the country felt the warmth once again with the humidity levels rising in the latter part of the week.

Daytime highs were around normal if not a little above in some areas.Otago and Southland had temperatures on Thursday up to 10 degrees above the norm taking place. Inland South Island areas and parts of Northland yesterday might have thought that the calendar had turned back a month or 2, when the thermometer nudged the 30 degree mark.

It was a topsy turvy 7 day period but the south warmed up for the first time in 3 weeks and also for the 3rd time in 3 weeks, sub tropical moisture also made its presence felt!

Weather Analyst – Richard Green