High wind might see Harbour Bridge closed during Friday's commute
Forecasts show winds of up to 90km/h are possible on the Auckland Harbour Bridge.
Photo:
123rf
New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) is warning Auckland motorists of potential closures on the Harbour Bridge on Friday morning due to strong winds.
Forecasts show winds of up to 90km/h are possible between 6am and 10am.
NZTA says those driving high-sided vehicles and motorcyclists should avoid the bridge and use the Western Ring Route on State Highways 16 and 18.
It said any closures or restrictions would be posted on its social media channels.
"NZTA thanks road users for their patience and understanding," NZTA said in its statement.
Speed limits kick in when winds hit 90km/h, and when gusts reach 110km/h, the bridge could be closed altogether.
No formal weather warnings for Auckland were in place on forecaster MetService's website as of Thursday afternoon.
Elsewhere across New Zealand, there was:
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter
curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
37 minutes ago
- RNZ News
Otago Regional Council closely monitoring rising rivers as heavy rain is yet to peak
It comes amid flooding in other parts of the South Island, including Motueka. Photo: RNZ / Samantha Gee Otago Regional Council is closely monitoring rising rivers that are yet to peak in North Otago, Dunedin and Clutha. An orange heavy rain warning was in place for Dunedin and Clutha until 9pm on Saturday night. ORC flood duty officer Ann Conroy said the council was keeping an eye on parts of the Tokomairaro floodplain such as Milton, the Lower Taieri floodplain including Henley, the Lower Clutha floodplain and Middlemarch. "Flood infrastructure is doing its job and performing as expected. There were no significant issues overnight and surface flooding and ponding are likely in lower lying areas. "We are ready to respond to any issues that arise will continue to closely monitor river levels," she said. Dunedin's Water of Leith and Lindsay Creek were not expected to top their banks. The council said coastal Dunedin bore the brunt of rainfall overnight - approximately 25-50mm, with other parts of Otago getting 20-50mm. Rainfall had eased in North Otago but Dunedin could see a further 20-30mm and 30-40mm for Clutha, it said. The Silver Stream near Mosgiel was expected to peak at about 90-100 cumecs on Saturday afternoon and the Taieri River at Outram at about 400-600 cumecs in the evening. Flooding of unprotected areas downstream of Outram was likely. The Clutha River at Balclutha was expected to peak at around 1900 cumecs on Sunday morning. Flooding was likely in low-lying areas next to the river upstream of Balclutha and unprotected areas downstream of the township on the Clutha delta. A heavy snow watch was also in place for Central Otago, Southland north of Lumsden, inland Dunedin and Clutha until 7pm on Saturday night. It's snowy down in Central Otago. Photo: Supplied/ Cath Gilmo A number of roads in the Clutha district were closed because of flooding. The council said crews were placing signs in the worst-affected areas but conditions could change quickly and deteriorate before they reached them. There was surface flooding in a number of areas around Clutha, particularly Milton. Dunedin City Council spokesman Scott MacLean said there were some road closures in Dunedin, but the network coped well with heavy rain overnight. "Contractors responded to isolated incidents of ponding overnight. Our teams are inspecting the network for damage and flooding, and there are some temporary road closures in place." Meanwhile, Metservice said about 40mm of rain had fallen in Dunedin city and surrounding areas in the past 12 hours. Meteorologist Devlin Lynden said while it's not quite the totals seen in the Tasman District, there'll be some swollen gutters and potentially surface flooding in flat areas such as Mosgiel and South Dunedin. He said the Central Otago hills have also received a dusting of snow, while the skifields around Wanaka and Queenstown got a dumping of about 20-30cm. The wet weather was expected to clear on Sunday ahead of another cold front moving in overnight, Lynden said. Laura Hedley, chief mountains officer for Cardrona and Treble Cone, said it's been an "incredible morning in the snow" for Treble Cone's opening day. Other skifields in the area opened earlier this month. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
3 hours ago
- RNZ News
'I've never woken up so disorientated in my life': Community helps tornado victims
The car was whipped around by the tornado Photo: RNZ / Emma Andrews Clean up efforts are underway after a tornado tore through the Taranaki town of Waitara overnight. There was a bit of confusion when Susan Duncan was woken up by her dog barking on Friday night, she thought someone was tampering with her daughters car which was parked outside of her house on Aratapu Street. "I heard the wind and I heard the wheelie bins and stuff, and it's sort of a normal thing that happens, but my dog just wouldn't shut up so I thought I better get up," Duncan said. She looked outside and saw her trees beaten and then she saw the car and thought "what the hell?" Waitara Aratapu St resident Susan Duncan said her Ford Focus was picked up and tossed around in the wind, after reports a tornado ripped through the area just after midnight, on Saturday 28 June, 2025. Photo: RNZ/ Robin Martin There was already a dent on the car, but the car had been swung by the tornado leaving skids on the grass and its windows had smashed. "I'm so shocked that all this has happened but my house is still standing. I'm so grateful and lucky that it wasn't in the middle of the day - imagine iron flying at you." Her daughter Jade spoke to RNZ while on a video call with her mum. Jade works as a baker in Wellington and was saving money to fix the minor dent on her car. "To see it absolutely destroyed sucks," Jade said. "I'm trying to move to Melbourne so I was going to fix the car and sell it, so I had that money to get to Melbourne." It was part of her plan because her fiancé is over there waiting for her. The car was whipped around by the tornado Photo: RNZ / Emma Andrews The car is worth $5000 and the insurance was put on hold, Duncan said, now the car will "go to the wreckers". "We didn't want to waste the money while it's not being used right? Nothing's going to happen to it," Duncan thought before the tornado struck. People have rallied around those who have been affected by the tornado, continuously bringing supplies and pumpkin soup. Waitara High School principal Daryl Warburton jumped into the school van, hitched up the trailer, and headed to his friends house on Aratapu Street. He was there to pick up the debris and locate items that were scooped up during the weather event. The affected houses on Aratapu Street are next to farm land where there are normally horses - the residence heard from the owner that the horses are safe. A roof has been patched up from the weather event on Aratapu Street Photo: RNZ / Emma Andrews Warburton had driven to the house on the farm and collected outdoor furniture that had flown approximately 250 metres. He said the flying items had sliced through wired fencing at the farm house. Meteorologist Kgolofello Dube said the atmospheric conditions at the time were "favourable" to a tornado forming, and given the damage, it was likely. It is not yet confirmed that there was one. Firefighters were called to several homes shortly after midnight after strong winds blew out a sunroom on Elliott Street . Fire and Emergency NZ said there were no injuries, but at least 11 houses on the main street of Waitara alone suffered damage. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
4 hours ago
- RNZ News
Weather: Marlborough District Council sending teams into flooded Wairau Valley township
Crews working on damage west of the Waihopai Bridge near Renwick, Marlborough. Photo: Supplied / Marlborough District Council The Marlborough District Council is sending teams into the cut off Wairau Valley township where it is understood homes have flooded. Mayor Nadine Taylor said emergency vehicles and a fuel truck to power a Marlborough Lines generator had been able to access the settlement, although State Highway 63 was closed between Renwick and St Arnaud. Many homes in the Wairau Valley lost power on Friday and while power had since been restored, Taylor said it was not yet known how many homes had been flooded. She said it was likely to be a few days until the full extent of damage was known. "It's still a fluid and dynamic situation in terms of understanding what's happened to some of our smaller outlying towns and settlements," she said. The council said there had been significant damage to SH63 in the Bankhouse area west of the Waihopai Bridge and Renwick because of the heavy rain. Contractors were clearing gravel to try to get the road reinstated at least to one lane but it would will probably remain closed from Renwick to Wairau Valley for the rest of Saturday. While the weather had improved, the council said areas remain flooded and the ground was saturated, with potential for further slips and road closures. The council said stopbanks held up well overall but emergency repairs were needed in the Waihopai Valley. Taylor said river engineers found weak spots where river water could be seen bubbling and seeping through the stopbank, with work on repairs to begin on Monday. The Spring Creek stop bank performed well despite engineers' concerns when drilling showed it was compromised in 2022/23, the council said. The council asked people to only flush toilets when necessary and use water sparingly. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
