Cantabrians have had a warm week, with firefighters battling several big blazes (file photo). Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon
Fire-weary Canterbury should get a much-needed respite from high temperatures and north-west gales as a change in the weather arrives, while much of the motu has had a warm start to the weekend, MetService says.
The Canterbury High Country has been under a strong wind watch through Saturday, but meteorologist David Miller said the northwest gales should ease Saturday evening and night - good news for regional firefighters after a week of wild fires.
Earlier on Saturday, Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) warned Cantabrians to take particular care not to spark new wildfires, in the hot and windy weather.
Miller said Christchurch was on track to reach 32C on Saturday, but a change to northeasterly winds would bring respite from the heat on Sunday, with a maximum high of 21C expected.
Rest of Aotearoa
Much of the country had a warm Saturday, thanks to light northwesterly winds, Miller said: "Much of the country is looking at fairly warm temperatures, across both islands: mid to high 20s, maybe even touching the early 30s in the eastern parts of both islands."
It's been a hot day for most of the North Island and eastern South Island, with northwesterly winds driving temperatures up above 30°C in a few places ♨
— MetService (@MetService) December 14, 2024
Christchurch got to 32°C today (31.8°C at the airport) - their highest temperature since January! pic.twitter.com/6ls8W2YXSt
As well as Christchurch, areas that had a warm day included Tairāwhiti - Gisborne, Timaru, Masterton, Kaikōura, Ashburton and Bleinheim.
"Central Otago is seeing temperatures in the mid-20s [Saturday] and Invercargill is having 19 - that's warm for them," Miller said.
Auckland's warm trend - in the mid-20s - is expected to continue for the next few days, but it was "fairly typical" for this time of year, and no urban alerts were necessary.
"It's hot but not exceedingly so," he said.
MetService will again issue 'urban heat alerts' this summer if a city's temperatures are expected to be "well above average".
