Strong wind and heavy rain hit Wellington in the weekend. The rain which began on the West Coast of the South Island, travelled up the North Island, making driving difficult for families travelling home at the end of the school holidays.
The rain is continuing to fall in many places and Regional Councils are watching rivers. The Whanganui River will reach its peak later tonight at high tide but will probably not reach the city bridge.
The rain was very heavy on the West Coast of the South Island. Buller had 280mm of rain in 36 hours. The Buller River flooded some low-lying farm land. State Highway 73 at Arthurs Pass was closed by land slips. Nelson and Marlborough also were worried about floods.
In the central North Island, State Highway 1 is closed tonight because of flooding. Slips on the road have closed parts of State Highway 2 and 3.
Meanwhile on the East Coast of the South Island, the sun shone and temperatures reached 22 degrees on Sunday in Christchurch. This is a record winter temperature for July.
Tomorrow a high pressure area from the Tasman Sea will bring fine weather for the next few days.
Vocabulary
Note the adjectives for wind and rain: strong wind, heavy rain (opposite: light wind, light rain)
peak – highest point
low-lying – not high land
slips – rocks and mud from the hill slip down onto the road