MetService is forecasting wet and windy weather across northern and central New Zealand this week as a deep low-pressure system and associated fronts move across the country.

Several watches and warnings were in place for heavy rain and severe thunderstorms on Monday as an active front moves across the country.

Several severe thunderstorm warnings had been issued early Monday morning, ahead of the impacts of downpours and thunderstorms seen in Northland and Auckland which caused major disruptions to the Auckland morning commute.
'Torrential rain was recorded across Northland overnight and into Auckland on Monday morning,” says MetService meteorologist Ashlee Parkes.

'From midnight through to 10am, Whangārei Airport reported 96.6mm of rainfall, with 64.4mm of that falling within an hour.

'On average Whangārei Airport receives 110mm of rainfall in March, so they had about half a month's rainfall in 60 minutes.”

In the Bay of Plenty, SunLive was sent several images and videos of flooding and swollen rivers following Monday's downpours.

One video sent in showed the Wairoa River that runs next to State Highway 29 in the Lower Kaimai area.

Jade NIsbet. who sent in the video, says the river hadn't been that high since 2018. Watch the video above.

While Monday morning's downpours were intense, they are still a wee way from Auckland records.

Leigh recorded 109.4mm/hr in May 2001 which broke the record held by Whenuapai in Feb 1966 (107mm/hr).

This front continues to move east across the country, bringing scattered rain to northern and central New Zealand, before clearing to the east on Tuesday.

However, the wet weather continues for many as the low-pressure system follows closely behind on Wednesday.

'Most regions will see rain during the week as the low-pressure system slowly moves across the country.

'There is a possibility for further heavy falls for some North Island regions on Wednesday. Southland is the only region that may not see any rain this week, with only a few showers forecast for Thursday.”

Ashlee says current models suggest the low-pressure system moves away to the east of the country during Thursday, bringing a mostly settled end to the week.