WINTRY WEATHER

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 151, 23 December 1938, Page 11

WINTRY WEATHER

BUT IMPROVING

Special forecast for Wellington:—

Moderate to strong southerly winds, gradually decreasing in force.

Weather cloudy to overcast with passing light showers at first, but improving. Temperatures cold, but rising.

The general forecast for the Dominion as a whole, issued at noon today for the ensuing twenty-four hours, is for southerly winds prevailing. These will be strong in some exposed positions, more especially about Cook Strait, but for the most part they will be light to moderate. In the western and far southern districts of the South Island the weather will be fine, but elsewhere it will be changeable, with occasional but mainly light showers in many places. Temperature's will be cold, but conditions will be gradually improving generally.

.While very slight secondary depressions have continued to cross the Dominion, pressure has been rising steadily with the advance of an anticyclone on to the central Tasman Sea. West to south winds prevailed yesterday, reaching the force of a moderate gale in parts of the North Island. They have since decreased somewhat in force while becoming more southerly in direction. Although the weather has been mainly fair, it has been changeable and showery at times in most districts, more particularly on the East Coast south of Cook Strait, where there were further thunderstorms yesterday. Temperatures have remained cold in the South Island and have become cooler in the North Island. There were still showers about this morning, but over much of the country conditions were definitely improving, the worst weather being in the neighbourhood of Wellington. Th 6 tropical cyclone, which yesterday was near the Fijian Islands, is now -moving in a south-easterly direction, its centre being somewhere between the Kermadec and Tpngan Islands. It seems likely that this storm will keep well to the east of the Dominion,. Beyond keeping the southerly winds fresh in force in the northern and eastern portions of the North Island, it is unlikely to affect materially the weather in New Zealand. ,As the anticyclone from the Tasman' Sea is likely to continue its eastward progress, the weather prospects for Christmas Day are still fair, but a rapid fall in pressure over south-eastern: Australia has put a diffeent complexion on the meteorological situation since, yesterday, and unsettled conditions, will quite probably set m in 'the far south during the weekend.

Although it was sunny in Auckland for a large proportion of the time yes-' terday, there were occasional passing showers, while about 8 a.m. today there was a short light hailstorm, the total rainfall being four points. A moderate westerly breeze has prevailed, and temperatures have been cool, the maximum being' 65.4 degrees and the minimum 51 degrees.

Practically all the 6.9 hours of bright! sunshine recorded in Wellington yes* terday- occurred in ,the morning. The wind changed to a light southerly early in the afternoon, and the weather then became threatening, with a light shower about 2 p.m. Less than one ■point of rain, however, was recorded. Conditions improved in the evening, but by this morning the southerly had freshened and the weather was dull and raw with- occasional very light-rain. Yesterday's maximum and minimum: temperatures were 65.5 arid 46.9 degrees respectively. What was a relatively high rainfall for that city occurred in Ghristchurch yesterday, most of the 78 points which were recorded being accounted for by last night's steady rain. There were showers also during the day. This morning it was still showery, but the weather was improving somewhat. A moderate southerly wind has prevailed and temperatures have been cooU with a maximum of 61,3 degrees and a minimum of 43.2 degrees. Apart from a few short spells ot sunshine in the afternoon, Dunedin's weather yesterday was dull' and showery, the rainfall totalling 15 points, It had improved this morning, but was still cold owing to the continuance of j a light southerly breeze.