Rain not enough to ease New Zealand’s drought by Steph Ball
Torrential rain hit New Zealand’s North Island over the weekend, but despite a six-hour downpour drenching the capital Wellington; it did little to ease the current drought. Wellington’s dry summer has left reservoirs and underground aquifers drained.
The storms which hit parts of the North Island gave up to 50mm (2 inches) of rain across Wellington, triggering flash floods with water levels rising up to a metre in places. This is the second time in just over a week that torrential rains have lashed the North Island. Previously, it was the top end of the island which was worst affected, from Northland down to Auckland.
Each time the Waikato region has missed out on some much needed rain. Waikato lies centrally across North Island and includes the city of Hamilton. It is severely drought stricken at present and experiencing its driest conditions in over a century. This is the first year that the government has had to declare an official drought. While the rain was welcomed, forecasters have stated that days of continuous rainfall would be needed to address the current deficit.
The weekend rain was triggered by low pressure systems crossing the islands and forecasters are expecting a southerly blast to bring more heavy rain later this week. However, they also claim that the mainly hot dry conditions, blamed on a strong La Niňa, could stretch into the autumn.
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