Warmest winter yet
Warm, wet and windy – like the rest of New Zealand, Taranaki’s winter has set several records.
Scientists at Niwa (National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research) have officially determined that winter 2022 was the warmest on record and parts of Taranaki were no exception, with New Plymouth and Stratford receiving their highest mean air temperatures for the season.
In New Plymouth this was 11.6 degrees Celsius – the highest since records began in 1944, while in Stratford it was 9.6C, with records beginning in 1960.
Nationally, the average temperature was 9.8C – 1.4C above the 1981 to 2010 average. Niwa meteorologist Ben Noll said the warmth was likely here to stay.
‘‘We feel like a broken record – the weather maps are always red,’’ he said. ‘‘It is pretty concerning to see that successively, season after season.’’
Along with being the warmest winter, Niwa said this year was also the wettest on record, due to a number of extreme rainfall events that resulted in severe flooding and slips – 42 locations across the country experienced a record or near-record wet winter.
So wet was July, that in one week in August there were more rain-free days in Taranaki than in the whole month prior.
The week of clear skies made for some brilliant sunrises and sunsets, and combined with a super moon. However, the sunshine did not last long and heavy rain drenched the region later in the month, so much so that portaloos were put out in Waitara and Inglewood as heavy rain put pressure on the sewerage system. The rain led to road and school closures, slips, fallen trees and flooded rivers.
The Hangatahua (Stony) River and the Manganui River threatened to burst their banks, and schools sent children home as the Waitara River came close to record flood levels.
What has caused all this rain? All winter we have been in the midst of a global climate system called La Nina.
Metservice said that when La Nina was active, there was an increased frequency of rainy weather systems approaching New Zealand from the north.
But despite the wind and rain, Taranaki remains New Zealand’s sunniest region with 1701 hours of sunshine, followed by Bay of Plenty (1675 hours), Greater Nelson (1621 hours) and
Auckland (1564 hours).
It was also windy in the region, with New Plymouth recording its third-equal highest wind gust speed of 117 kilometres an hour on June 13.
That day power was cut to about 1000 properties due to downed trees taking out power lines.
It was a wild week in Taranaki, as two days earlier strong winds brought down power lines, causing power outages for about 300 properties across Warea, Eltham, Urenui and Okato.
Later in July, there was another storm that saw lightning strike a tree in Inglewood, completely splitting it.
The warmer than normal weather also placed a hold on the ski season in Taranaki during the winter months.
To date, the skifield on Taranaki Maunga, which has been known to open as early as May, has not turned on its rope tows or T-bar and with recent rain washing almost all the snow away, there is little chance it will. However, there may be a little more snow on Taranaki Maunga today, with a southerly blast hitting the region last night.
Metservice had a strong wind warning in place for the region from 9pm yesterday until 4am today, with southeasterly winds of up 120kph expected in exposed places.
The southerly will also see a big drop in temperatures, with an overnight low of 1C forecast tonight.
The sun is expected today, with showers tomorrow.
‘‘We feel like a broken record – the weather maps are always red. It is pretty concerning to see that successively, season after season.’’ Ben Noll