Residents on the South Island’s West Coast are in line for more heavy rain this morning after police warned motorists to avoid travel overnight due to flooded roads. 

But it’s a tale of two islands with eastern parts of the North Island tipped to hit 30C - for the first time since February last year. 

The sodden region remains under an orange heavy rain warning which came into effect at 9pm last night, causing rivers to rapidly rise ahead of high tide in the early hours of Saturday. 

West Coast Emergency Management yesterday said it was “closely monitoring” the forecast as the region braced for 400mm of rain from yesterday until lunchtime today. 

An updated heavy rain warning was placed over the Westland district last night, telling residents to expect 250 to 300mm of rain about the ranges and 100 to 130mm nearer to the coast on top of what had already fallen on Friday. 

“It is not unusual for these areas to receive these amounts of rainfall; however, as always, we need to be closely monitoring and ready to activate if need be, particularly for the Westland district,” said West Coast Emergency Management manager Claire Brown. 

“Members of the public are advised to keep up to date with weather information as rivers may rise quickly, surface flooding and slips are possible and driving conditions could be hazardous.” 

Police last night asked people in southern Westland to avoid travel overnight as flooding had closed roads in the Haast area. 

“There are a number of roads in the area with surface flooding, which are being closed by contractors. 

“High tide is due overnight so people are asked to be extra cautious.” 

In an update at 7pm last night, the West Coast Regional Council said no Westland rivers had reached first stage alarms but it expected this to happen overnight. 

It said it was keeping an eye on four key rivers; Arawhata River, Waiho River, Wanganui River and Hokitika River. 

MetService heavy rain warnings remain in effect for the Westland District and Canterbury Headwaters south of Arthur’s Pass until 3pm this afternoon. MetService warned of peak rainfall rates of 25 to 35 mm/h and a low to moderate chance of it being upgraded to a red warning. 

A warning came in effect for Grey and Buller districts at 1am this morning and will lapse at 9pm tonight. 

MetService advised streams and rivers may rise. Surface flooding and slips were possible as well as hazardous driving conditions. 

“These are substantial numbers, even for the West Coast, so it’s certainly worth preparing in advance by moving stock and planning for potential travel restrictions,” said MetService meteorologist Dan Corrigan. 

Meanwhile, other parts of New Zealand are set for a scorching weekend, with eastern parts of the North Island tipped to hit 30C. 

“Some spots in Hawke’s Bay may even crack 30C on Saturday for the first time since last summer,” Corrigan said. 

“The last time Hastings recorded a temperature over 30 was the 24th of February at the end of last summer with 30.8C.” 

Niwa meteorologist Chris Brandolino said parts of the country were looking at “pretty impressive” warmth. 

Other areas in the North Island, such as Hamilton and Northland, will also see highs in the low-to-mid-20s today. 

Auckland is tipped for a mainly fine day, but showers may develop around midday. MetService predicted a high of 23C and a low of 15C. 

Corrigan said rain on the West Coast would ease while travelling up the country to the lower North Island on Sunday. 

“Warning amounts” of rain for these regions were not expected.