People with plans to travel and meet family and friends to celebrate New Year need to watch out for occasional thunderstorms as a “wet weather system” looks to roll over Northland.

“Keep an eye out for severe weather forecasts if you’re travelling today and on Sunday afternoon,” said Metservice meteorologist John Law.

Intermittent rainfall is expected today until the early hours of Saturday.

“But the good news is that those lingering thunderstorms will soon clear off and Northland can expect high temperatures for the days leading up to New Year.”

Law said the humid and warm air forecasted to arrive from the north and the west tomorrow would drive up the temperatures. Places like Whangārei and Kerikeri would see the heat peak around 28C on Saturday and cool down by a few degrees on Sunday.

Also, overnight temperatures were expected to be muggy and would average 20C on all nights leading up to Monday.

Starting from midday on New Year’s Eve, another weather system coming from the south would bring in rain - which is predicted to continue sporadically until Sunday midnight.

“So, if people are planning to have outdoor activities to celebrate, do keep an eye out on the weather.

“Otherwise based on our forecast the start of New Year looks quite nice as Northlanders can expect a pleasant sunny temperature of 23C throughout the region,” Law said.

Avneesh Vincent is the crime and emergency services reporter at the Advocate. He was previously at the Gisborne Herald as the arts and environment reporter and is passionate about covering stories that can make a difference. He joined NZME in July 2023.