WEATHER WARNING

We strongly suggest you check the state of all the mooring lines.  Are they strong enough to take the increased loadings that will occur during this storm? Double up if necessary and reduce the possibility of damage.   

“Forecasters are warning that a storm set to hit the North island over the weekend will be severe.  he Met Service is calling it "no ordinary storm" and the Radio Network's weather analyst Philip Duncan described it as "extremely rare and nasty".

A rapidly intensifying storm is heading for northern New Zealand, striking first in Northland and Auckland before reaching Bay of Plenty and Gisborne on Sunday, Met Service said.  "This is no ordinary storm. It's one of the largest and deepest lows we've seen for some years," Met Service spokesman Peter Kreft said.  "By the time this system reaches northern New Zealand on Saturday, it is likely to have significant destructive potential."

Mr Duncan said: "It is going to deepen rapidly and has the potential of bringing damaging winds, flooding rains, big seas and strong rip tides. It may well be the most intense sub-tropical storm of the decade".

He said the air pressure with this system could drop to 967hPa for a time on Saturday which he says is extremely rare for areas near Auckland.   "This could help create one of the biggest storm surges seen in the upper North Island for several years," he said.  "If this prediction eventuates we could see storm surges flooding low lying eastern coastal areas from Northland to Auckland and across Coromandel and Bay of Plenty. It may also pose a serious risk for low lying areas around the Firth of Thames which is particularly vulnerable to northern storm surges".