Upper Hutt Community Rescue

⚠️ We’ve got an orange heavy rain warning in the already saturated Wairarapa, as well as the eastern hills of Wellington, while the strong wind watch across the rest of the region has a high chance of being upgraded to a warning.

🌙 As darkness descends, the rain and wind is predicted to intensify, which makes for a dangerous equation. There will be an increased chance of surface flooding, slips, and trees and powerlines down, while visibility will decrease.

☕️So our advice is to hunker down, put the kettle and a movie on, and keep an eye and an ear out in case there are any impacts around your place.

🚗 If you do have to venture out, please take extreme caution. Driving conditions may be hazardous, so slow down and take extra care out there so you can get home safe.

🎒 As we have seen in recent months, things can change very quickly. Now is the time to have a grab bag ready for everyone in your household. It should have warm clothes, a bottle of water, snacks, copies of important documents, and photo ID. Remember any medications you may need. Keep your first aid kit, torch, radio and batteries, mobility devices and any other essential supplies somewhere you can grab them in a hurry.

⚠️💨🌊🌧️ SEVERE WEATHER UPDATE 26 JUNE⚠️💨🌊🌧️

9PM UPDATE
A further update from MetService, who say to expect between 50 to 80 mm of rain between now and 6am tomorrow for the Tararua Range, Wairarapa south of Masterton, and Wellington.

The wind warning for Wellington has been downgraded to a watch and is set to expire at midnight, as is the swell warning.

We have seen impacts from the rain in Wairarapa, with many local roads closed due to flooding, as well as SH53 Waihenga Bridge and SH2 northbound at Waingawa.

Continue to follow the local councils and NZTA for roading updates.

Power outages remain across Wellington and Wairarapa, although have come down on the peak of around 4000 during the day to around 2000 now. Crews are working hard to get power back on for as many people as possible tonight.

Flights in and out of Wellington have continued to be cancelled through the evening. Please contact your airline if you are impacted.

Slips and landslides have occured across the region. Even once the rain stops, the risk will still remain, so please be vigilant in looking out for the signs: https://www.wremo.nz/hazards/other-hazards

6.15PM UPDATE

Some updated forecasts in from MetService New Zealand below:

Heavy rain warning - orange
The Tararua Range, Wairarapa south of Masterton, and Wellington from 5pm today to 6am tomorrow. Expect 60 to 90 mm of rain on top of what has already fallen, especially about the ranges. Peak rates of 10 to 15 mm/h.

Strong wind warning - orange
From 5pm - 9pm today for Wellington, severe gale southerlies with gusts of 120 km/h in exposed places. Note, gale southerlies may also approach severe gale after the warning period tonight and before dawn on Saturday.

5PM UPDATE
If you're still out and about, now is probably the time to head home, and stay home for the night.

With heavy rain, winds and heavy swells still forecast for much of the rest of the evening, we'd encourage people to be getting home and staying home.

If you do still have to travel home, please take extreme care, particularly around roads near the sea/harbour.

There are a number of local road closures across the region. Please check you local council website or social media for updates. SH1 on the Urban Motorway southbound still has lanes closed due to swells coming onto the road.

There have been a number of slips reported across the region, so please take heed of our advice from our previous post about watching for the signs of coming landslides.

Power is still out for around 1100 homes in Wellington Electricity's area and around 400 for PowerCo over in the Wairarapa.

1.30PM UPDATE
That wind isn't letting up just yet, so please continue to take care out there.

🌧️The worst of the rain is also forecast to come from around 6pm onwards, so if you can, try to take the rain precautions listed below before dark.

🛫Flights are still impacted into Wellington Airport. Please contact your airline for more information.

⚡️Power outages have hit parts of the Hutt Valley, Johnsonville, Plimmerton and Pukerua Bay. Wellington Electricity are working hard to get this restored as quickly as possible today. You can follow WE safety advice for what to do in an outage: https://www.welectricity.co.nz/outages/reporting-a-power-outage

Wellington Water reports the Moa Point wastewater treatment plan's short outfall is currently discharging untreated, unscreened wastewater into Tarakena Bay, and it is likely to be travelling around the coastline.
Check https://www.lawa.org.nz/ before visiting beaches along the south coast.

🚗Follow NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi - Wellington for up to date information about local highways. The sea spray and swells has been impacting the urban motorway, while the shared path between Ngauranga and Petone (Te Ara Tupua) is closed.

Follow your local council for local road information.

---

9.30AM UPDATE
We have started to see some impacts from the weather warnings today, including power outages, flights and ferries cancelled, and reports of trees downs and roofs lifting.

We are working closely with our local councils and emergency services partners to actively monitor and manage the situation. Please continue to follow their channels for local updates.

We urge the public to take caution if they are out and about today, and to stay home if possible.

Rain
🌧️Heavy rain may cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly. Surface flooding and slips are also possible and driving conditions may be hazardous.
🚗Take extra care on the roads.
🧹 Clear stormwater drains to help prevent surface flooding if it is safe to do so.

Wind
🌬️Strong wind gusts like these have already started damaging trees and powerlines.
🌲We would encourage people to avoid parks and reserves due to the danger presented by falling trees and branches.
🏡 If you haven’t already and it is safe to do so, you should secure any outdoor items like wheelie bins, trampolines and outdoor furniture that may blow around.

Swells
🌊 Take care walking or driving along roads exposed to the sea today. There is a risk of water and debris coming onto the roads around Wellington and Wairarapa's south coast.
🚣‍♀️We would strongly encourage people to not head out on their boats today.

Update 6/6 6.30am

Good morning everyone,

All warnings and watches have been lifted but it’s still going to be a bit wet and miserable today. Expect showers across the region, heavy at times, particularly for the Kāpiti Coast.

Continue to take extra care when out and about, especially on the roads.

Have a safe weekend

WREMO Duty Team

————————————————————————-

⛈️HEAVY RAIN WARNING - TARARUA RANGE⛈️
MetService New Zealand has issued a Heavy Rain Warning for TARAUA RANGE from 9.00 am Friday 5 June to 3am Saturday 6 June.

100-130mm is expected to accumulate with peak rates of 15-25mm/h.

There is also Heavy Rain WATCH for Kāpiti and the rest of the Wellington Region, 9am Fri-2am Saturday, with possible thunderstorms.

Heavy rain may cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly. Surface flooding and slips are also possible and driving conditions may be hazardous.

- Take extra care on the roads.
- Clear gutters and drains to help prevent surface flooding.
- If you’re making weekend plans, factor in the weather and be ready to adjust if conditions change.

Keep an eye on the weather and visit https://www.metservice.com/warnings/home for the latest updates.

For more information about watches and warnings, see https://about.metservice.com/about-severe-weather-warnings

Take care, WREMO Duty Team

Up before the world meeting the sun