Latest news with #wildweather
RNZ News
6 days ago
- Climate
- RNZ News
Wild weather puts Taupo residents on edge
Wild weather swept across the nation and had one small settlement next to Lake Taupo on edge this morning. Homes next to the Taupo-Tauranga River were preparing to evacuate as the waters rose after heavy overnight rain. The weather caused chaos elsewhere too, leading to power outages, road closures and snow. Jimmy Ellingham reports. Tags: To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
RNZ News
6 days ago
- Climate
- RNZ News
School roof lifted and twisted in storm gales, house roof dumped blocks away
Konini Primary School in Wainuiomata had to be closed on Thursday, after the roof of its library was lifted in a storm. Photo: Supplied Strong winds have lifted and twisted the roof of a school library, and torn the roof off a house, dumping it blocks away, as wild weather sweeps across the country. Wild weather has been felt through much of the country, with strong winds taking out power lines at a number of places in the North Island, leaving hundreds without power. Emergency services responded to 58 callouts for the top of the North Island, mostly for flooding and fallen trees. In the Wellington suburb of Newlands a duplex in Sunhaven Drive was left uninhabitable when the roof was torn off it, and the residents had to be evacuated. Firefighters worked at the scene in the early hours of Thursday morning, tying what they could of the roof down, but a lot of it ended up on another street two blocks away. A house in Newlands had its roof torn apart in strong winds. Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii Just over 15km away, in the Lower Hutt suburb of Wainuiomata, the library at Konini Primary School was lifted in the storm overnight, between Wednesday and Thursday. Pictures showed massive steel sheets and timber support beams twisted high up above the building. The roof at Konini Primary School was badly damaged. Photo: Supplied Parents with children at the school were warned to keep their tamariki home for the day: "Overnight weather conditions have caused major damage to the roof of the library, and it is at risk of coming off," the school said on Facebook, on Thursday morning. "Due to current winds the fire service are unable to secure the roof safely." However, during the day teams were able to repair the roof and waterproof it, and parents were told the rest of the school would be open on Friday: "Still lots of work to get our library and resource room usable, but it is safe for students to return to tomorrow." In Newlands, a neighbour of the Sunhaven Drive duplex that lost its roof said he had been woken by loud bangs in the early hours, as debris hit his house. Bingo Jayme said the corrugated iron structure was torn away and flew over trees and neighbouring homes, before coming down, just after 2am. He had struggled to understand what had happened as he searched his property by torchlight in the darkness. "I think somebody was watching over us up there, because if this landed in the middle of our bedroom there's a chance it would have ... you know. "It was very loud and it's the entire roof all the way there." From the scene, RNZ reporter Ruth Hill said the roof looked like it had been peeled back, and there were are bits of insulation blowing all over the road. The roof from the Sunhaven Drive house was blown onto a property in Tamworth Crescent. Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii The damaged Sunhaven Drive duplex had pieces of roofing timber sticking up into the air and a council building inspector was looking at the property. But, "I can't see them being able to come home anytime soon though, they have no roof," Hill said. Insulation on the roadside after the Newlands house had its roof ripped off in strong winds. Photo: RNZ/Mark Papalii Deanna Jones, who lives directly across the road from the house on Sunhaven Drive was woken at 2am by a loud noise. "I heard it lifting off. A bit of wood came off and landed in the cul-de-sac. I think we've got some debris down the back because I heard it coming down our driveway." Two fire crews were on the scene until about 3.30am. "I think they were trying to work out how to secure it, because it's a two-storey property." Her neighbour, Tiff Bock, was oblivious to the drama overnight. "I woke up this morning and saw bits of insulation everywhere on the house, and I thought 'Oh, have I lost a bit of roof'?'. "Then I looked out the window." She was horrified to learn the roof had ended up on Tamworth Crescent, on the hill below her own home. "It's going to be a bit of mess to clean up." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
6 days ago
- RNZ News
Midday Report Essentials for Thursday 5 June 2025
conservation crime 37 minutes ago In today's episode, the Prime Minister has expressed what he says is his absolute shock over revelations about one of his senior press secretaries, the worst of the wild weather which has been lashing the country appears to be over - for now, three people have been charged with manslaughter over the 2023 Loafers Lodge fire in Wellington, and it's that time of year again-when young kekeno or fur seals start turning up in all sorts of odd places, from footpaths and paddocks to busy roads.
RNZ News
25-05-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Weather: Rain and wind warnings, watches for southern and central parts of New Zealand
A sweeping front is set to hit southern and central New Zealand. Photo: Supplied/MetService Wild weather is sweeping in from the Tasman, bringing the possibility of flooding and thunderstorms. The front is set to hit southern and central parts of the country - the West Coast in particular. MetService Warnings and Watches are in place for heavy rain and severe gales. The weather forecaster said overnight, the highest rainfall was at Arthur's Pass, with 120 millimetres in the last 12 hours. A few places in the Canterbury High Country had rainfall in the 60-70mm range, with some lightning strikes mostly over the water. Rain is expected to hit Wellington by 7am on Monday. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
The Australian
24-05-2025
- Climate
- The Australian
Millions of Aussies about to cop more wild weather
Australia is set for more wild weather this week - but of a different kind after torrential rain and flooding buffeted NSW. The Bureau of Meteorology says that a cold front is due to sweep into south-eastern Australia, bringing rain, destructive winds and even snow. With winter just a week away, meteorologist Jonathan How described it as the most powerful cold front of the year. The cold front is moving in from the Southern Ocean and is expected to make its mark on southern Australia on Sunday and Monday. The BOM says that residents in southern states can expect strong northerly winds and there is the risk of dust storms across the agricultural regions of South Australia and Victoria. Strong winds are forecast for large parts of South Australia, Victoria and south eastern NSW over the next few days. Picture: Supplied/BOM. On Sunday night, the cold front will reach Adelaide, bringing rain, strong winds and thunderstorms. Ten to 25mm of rain is expected in the South Australian capital on Monday, with showers easing by the middle of the week. The bureau has issued strong wind and gale warnings for large swathes of South Australia and Victoria for Sunday. The BOM also warns that winds over 90km/h are expected in the NSW Snowy Mountains and alpine regions. Conditions are expected to ease across south-eastern NSW on Sunday before northerly winds pick up again the following day. On Monday, the cold front will push across the rest of south eastern Australia. 'We see these very strong winds coming up from the south, with widespread damaging winds expected to across much of south east South Australia, Victoria, and also New South Wales,' Mr How said. Sydney is expected to be mostly sunny on Sunday, but rain is forecast to return next week. Tuesday is expected to be cold, with sub-10 degree minimums expected in Adelaide and Melbourne, with possible snow in the alps. Warragamba Dam spill during a spill last year. Picture: NCA NewsWire. DAM SPILLS Meanwhile, Sydney's Warragamba Dam has spilled after a week of heavy rain. WaterNSW said that Warragamba Dam - which services much of Sydney - reached 100 per cent capacity on Saturday afternoon. It said that inflows into the dam were slowing as rain clears, however it was now at capacity. 'Residents are reminded to remain alert to warnings,' WaterNSW said in a statement. 'If you are downstream of the dam, stay away from fast flowing or deep water near waterways and floodplains.' An outflow of 20 gigalitres is expected on Sunday. 78.7mm of rain has fallen across the Warragamba catchment over the last week, according to WaterNSW. Several other smaller dams across greater Sydney are already spilling including Woronora, Nepean, Cataract, Avon and Tallowa. Warragamba spilled three times last year, in April, May and June. The clean up has begun in Taree. Picture: Scott Calvin/ NewsWire. CLEAN UP BEGINS The NSW SES says the clean-up is beginning, while they are looking to resupply residents that have been cut off due to rising waters during record floods across the NSW Mid North Coast and Hunter regions. NSW SES acting assistant commissioner Allison Flaxman said they estimate 10,000 properties have been impacted by the floods. 'As the river levels begin to subside, NSW SES members and our partner agencies are today commencing the task of assessing properties which have been flood affected,' she said. The SES is warning residents to let damage assessments take place before anyone tries to return home. 'It's important we need to evaluate the extent of property and infrastructure damage to ensure your property is safe to return to,' Ms Flaxman said. At the same time she said the SES will continue to carry out re-supply operations of essential foods and medications to stranded residents. 'The NSW SES has carried out 200 resupply requests in the last two days,' she said. 'There are still many communities that remain isolated, with 50,000 people estimated to be impacted.' Read related topics: Weather Steve Zemek Court reporter Steve Zemek began his career in his native Queensland before moving to Sydney with Australian Associated Press in 2014. He worked as an NRL journalist for five seasons, covering the game all over Australia and in New Zealand before making a career pivot towards court reporting in 2019. He joined NCA NewsWire in mid 2020 as a Sydney-based court reporter where he has covered some of the state's biggest cases. @stevezemek
