Weather disruption: What you need to know

4:59 pm on 15 May 2015

Rain brought much of the Wellington region to a standstill yesterday and has also caused some disruption today. Here are the basic facts.

MetService's rain radar - at 6.30am Friday.

MetService has a severe weather warning in place for parts of the North Island (rain radar - 6.30am Friday). Photo: MetService

Evacuations:

Residents of the 27 houses evacuated yesterday on the Kapiti Coast because of flooding are being warned to stay away until they're given the all-clear.

Wellington Regional Emergency Management Office (WREMO) controller Scott Dray says anyone who has had water damage should have the power disconnected while they are doing repairs or cleaning up.

He says council building inspectors are checking flooded homes and can advise on whether it is safe to return.

Roads:

Motorists in Wellington are being advised to take care on the roads as clean-up work continues.

Both north and southbound lanes on State Highway 1, between Pukerua Bay and Paekakariki, are now open after roadworks were carried out at a slip site between Paekakariki and Pukerua Bay.

It says there will be controls in place, affecting travel in both directions.

The Transport Agency's Wellington regional performance manager Mark Owen said there would still be some delays as traffic was forced to slow down.

State Highway 2 and State Highway 58 remain open.

Paekakariki Hill Road is now open to light traffic while Grays Road at Plimmerton remains closed.

Floodwaters are receding on the Kapiti Coast but council crews remain on standby.

Kapiti Mayor Ross Church said some roads in the area may still have surface flooding and debris, but most were expected to be driveable.

People are warned to stay clear of streams and rivers, which are still running high.

Trains:

Some commuters in the Wellington region are taking a train home tonight, but others still face disruptions following yesterday's torrential rain.

Services on the Hutt Valley linebetween Wellington and Upper Hutt resumed this afternoon, as did Kapiti Line trains between Wellington and Plimmerton.

But buses will still operate between Plimmerton and Waikanae.

On the Johnsonville Line, trains are operating every 30-minutes, but on the Melling Line they are cancelled until Monday.

Porirua Station is closed with people wishing to get off there neding to travel to Paremata for a shuttle service.

Buses are replacing some of the Wairarapa Line services though a train will running at 10.25pm tonight between Wellington and Masterton.

And on the Johnsonville Line, trains are operating to a half hourly timetable.

Buses:

Extra Route 83 buses are now running between Courtenay Place in Wellington and Queensgate in Lower Hutt every 15 minutes until 2.30pm.

Metlink is reminding passengers that regular Go Wellington, Valley Flyer, Mana and Newlands services are still running but there will be substantial delays.

Weather:

Showers have eased around much of the Wellington region but rain is expected to return later in the day.

MetService has a severe weather warning in place again for parts of the North Island. The heaviest rain is expected in the Tararua District and Hawke's Bay, south of Waipukurau.

A weather warning for the Tararua Range, Kapiti Coast, Horowhenua and Bay of Plenty has been lifted.

Overnight, another 24 millimetres of rain fell on the already-drenched Kapiti Coast while 20 millimetres were recorded in Lower Hutt.

MetService says, in the past 24 hours, Paraparaumu recorded 120 millimetres of rain - double its May average.

Schools:

Close to a dozen schools across the Wellington region were closed today.

Schools that have confirmed their closure today include:

Schools that have confirmed they will be open today include:

Yesterday, the weather forced the closure of dozens of schools on the Kapiti Coast and some in Wellington, including Raumati Beach School, Paraparaumu College, Pukerua Bay School, Paekakariki School and Wellington High School.