Heatwave on East Coast as MetService issues alerts for Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne

Moving further south and the dry conditions continue despite early cloudy conditions from Taranaki through Whanganui and down to Wellington, but this should clear by the afternoon.

A warm weekend is in store for Auckland and much of the North Island. Photo / Alex Burton

A high of 21C is expected in Wellington, but cloud should be returning in the evening alongside strong northwesterlies.

The South Island will be hit by most of the wet weather this weekend, particularly on the West Coast.

A heavy rain warning has been placed on Fiordland for 26 hours from 11pm this evening to 1am Monday.

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Hawkes Bay and Tairawhiti/Gisborne are set to collect daytime temperatures in the low 30s over the weekend, with the Bay of Plenty in a similar boat.
Heat alerts have being issued, which you can learn about here: https://t.co/1wEzC1Srjb. pic.twitter.com/FCKgphCSlo

— MetService NZ (@MetService) December 5, 2025

Up to 240mm of rain is expected in the region during this period, with peak rates of up to 30mm/h expected Sunday evening.

MetService has warned streams and rivers could rise rapidly and surface flooding, slips and difficult driving conditions are possible.

On Sunday, the fine weather continues for the North Island while the South Island continues to be hit with heavy wet weather in the west and a few spots of rain elsewhere.

Moving in to Monday, some isolated inland showers might appear in the North Island while rain in the South Island starts to spread north and clear in the south.