Big rain clouds are continuing to build this afternoon over the Waikato, Coromandel and Western Bay of Plenty.

WeatherWatch.co.nz head weather analyst Philip Duncan says thunderstorms are now starting to develop over eastern sides of the Kaimai and Mamaku Ranges while torrential downpours are affecting the entire Firth of Thames coastline.

“This hour we’re tracking some big cells across south Waikato towards King Country, the entire Firth of Thames coastline and the Kaimai and Mamaku Ranges – including eastern Waikato and western Bay of Plenty”.

Mr Duncan says the rain clouds are big, slow moving and could cause localised flash flooding.

The Weather Watch Centre doesn’t expect thunderstorms over Auckland today however heavy evening showers, similar to yesterday in the east, are still possible – but Mr Duncan says they are looking less likely with each passing hour. 

In the last 60 minutes 76 flashes of lightning have been recorded by the Lightning Detector at weatherwatch.co.nz compared to just 8 the hour before.  Most have been recorded along the ranges of the western Bay of Plenty.

Current Areas of Concern:

• Entire Firth of Thames coastline.
• State Highway 2 between Maramarua and Ngatea.
• Hunua Ranges
• Coromandel Peninsula
• Kaimai Ranges – including eastern Waikato and Western Bay of Plenty (west of Tauranga & including Katikati)
• Mamaku Ranges
• South Waikato/North King Country