September started off fairly calm, but as predicted by WeatherWatch.co.nz back in August a westerly pattern change kicked in around mid-month (Canterbury wind storm) and is now set in across the country.

Yesterday WeatherWatch.co.nz prepared another monthly report for Fonterra and this time we’re saying these strong westerly winds are here to stay for the weeks ahead.  “October looks to be windier overall and while it may not be as extreme as those Canterbury winds back in September it does look as though more regions will have more wind especially around the middle of the month” says head weather analyst Philip Duncan.

“Weeks two and three of October look quite unsettled with large lows crossing the South Island or central New Zealand bringing strong to gale force winds for central and eastern areas and heavy rain for western regions”.

Heavy showers may also have thunder as the spring mix of warm and cool air continues.

“We see a couple of big lows in the coming weeks, everything is running text book for September and October so far.  This is the peak of spring now and the stormier weather should taper off as we head into November”.

If you love sunny, warm, weather there are some silver linings says Mr Duncan.  “Spring bounces back quickly – so a windy cold day can be replaced by a warm, sunny, calm day 24 hours later”.
 

OCTOBER – Generally Speaking…

Sunniest regions for the month ahead are likely to be Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and Hawkes Bay.

Wettest will be Fiordland and the West Coast.

Windiest will be eastern and central NZ.

Driest will likely be the eastern coastline of both islands

– Image / Wellington, Sam Hall

– WeatherWatch.co.nz