Weather: Northland set for 41 hours of heavy rain; red weather warnings possible

Meteorologist Silvia Martino told the Herald rain would start spreading south into Northland this afternoon.

“The rain starts to get heavy in the evening and it really is a long period of heavy rain for them,” she said, warning of consistent rain “for a couple of days”.

MetService said the heaviest rain was likely in the upper North Island, especially from Northland to western Bay of Plenty.

“Downpours, flooding, and slips are possible on Thursday and Friday.”

Between 130 and 200mm of rain is forecast to fall across Northland, Martino said.

“In the northern and eastern parts that are most exposed, up to 250mm is possible.”

A heavy rain warning is forecast to come into effect for Northland from 4pm until 9am on Friday.

🟠🟡Several Watches have been issued for Heavy Rain, as well as an Orange Warning for Northland, which has a Moderate chance of being upgraded to a Red Warning

Wind Watches are also in place for Northland and Auckland for easterly to northeasterly gusts approaching severe gale pic.twitter.com/leZDsjeCDV

— MetService NZ (@MetService) March 23, 2026

Heavy rain warnings are also forecast to come into force for Great Barrier Island and the Coromandel Peninsula from early tomorrow morning until Friday night.

Martino said the rain would begin to move across Auckland today; however, the heaviest rain would drench the city tomorrow and into Friday.

A heavy rain watch has been forecast for Auckland from 4am tomorrow until 3pm Friday.

There is a high chance the watch would be upgraded to a warning, MetService said.

A strong wind watch is forecast to come into effect for Northland from 6pm until 3am Friday and for Auckland, including Great Barrier Island, from 6am tomorrow until 9am Friday.

The wet weather will continue to spread southward tomorrow, with the Coromandel and Bay of Plenty set to be drenched in the morning, Martino said.

A big weather event on the way! ☁️ 🌊 🌧️

🌀 A deep low-pressure system currently located south-west of New Caledonia, gradually tracks south. The system will not only bring heavy rain and strong winds to parts of New Zealand, but waves will also rise.

So, expect heavy swells… pic.twitter.com/OHYDdhvV6l

— MetService NZ (@MetService) March 24, 2026

Heavy rain and strong winds will also affect parts of the South Island, especially for Tasman and the West Coast.

The powerful winds were forecast to bring heavy swells to coastal areas.

“Expect heavy swells with heights exceeding 4m to affect coastal areas of the North Island from Wednesday night,” MetService said.

“Later in the week, big waves will affect the South Island, with swell heights possibly exceeding 6m, especially in the western coastal areas.”

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