Severe weather dampens Wellington’s long weekend
Flights into Wellington were cancelled yesterday as winds gusting up to 140kmh pummelled the region, closing highways, blowing out windows and bringing down trees, fences and lamp-posts.
Traffic in central Wellington was also disrupted later in the day when strong winds blew a large pane of glass on to a moving car, forcing part of Vivian St to be cordoned off overnight.
Wellington escaped the worst of the country’s wild weather on Saturday but winds started picking up in the city about 4am yesterday, Metservice duty forecaster Cameron Coutts said.
A gust of 140kmh was recorded at Mt Kaukau at 7am.
The New Zealand Transport Agency closed State Highway 2 over the Rimutaka Hill at 5pm due to strong wind gusts. It also warned of rock falls on SH1 between Pukerua Bay and Paekakariki.
Jetstar cancelled all six flights between Wellington and Nelson yesterday morning, citing bad weather. ‘‘Safety is our priority,’’ a spokesman said.
Two afternoon flights were also halted.
Wellington Airport spokeswoman Arpi Dutta said operations were running normally at the airport but some inbound flights were cancelled due to bad weather elsewhere in the country.
Vivian St in central Wellington was closed between Tory St and Cambridge Terrace after a window flew out a building and smashed on to a moving car in the street.
A large pane of glass blew out of the top floor of the Whitireia Performance Centre. A group of students said this happened when a strong gust hit about 2.30pm.
Those inside were asked to stay put because there was a risk another window would blow out as they were leaving, and there was no alternative exit.
After conducting safety checks, police escorted six people out of the building at 3.50pm. There were no reports of injuries.
A lamp-post also fell on to a building on Lower Hutt’s Gracefield Rd about 11.30am. Soon after, fire crews were alerted to a tree partially blocking Ebdentown St in Upper Hutt.
Strong winds in Waikanae also appeared to have blown down a security fence at the site of a new $1.7 million commuter car park.