Emergency services across Otago are on high alert as scorching temperatures increase the risk of fire across the South Island.
Some areas are forecast to reach over 30C today, including Christchurch, 34C, Dunedin, 33C , Kaikoura, 30C, and Ashburton, 34C.
In the North Island it's also expected to reach 30C in Hastings and Gisborne.
But nowhere across the country is set to escape the heat, with Auckland forecast for 26 degrees and Wellington 24.
NIWA Weather also reported the 37.6 degrees registered in the Central Otago town of Clyde yesterday was New Zealand's hottest January temperature in 14 years, since Darfield reached 38.4 in January 2004.
But from tomorrow it could go from one extreme to the other with Tropical Cyclone Fehi expected to arrive.
The Category One Tropical Cyclone Fehi formed around New Caledonia on Monday this week.
While it is predicted to weaken and cross the South Island on Thursday, it should bring with it very heavy rain and wind as it approaches the western coastline.
Power outages, flooding and high winds are forecast.
Yesterday, MetService warned to expect a slew of strong wind watches and warnings to be issued this morning across the country.
The hot weather is also having a big impact on New Zealand's "water tower" glaciers.
The high temperatures in the South Island are having a concerning effect on glaciers and ice fields, according to University of Otago researchers.
A research team has just returned from the ice fields - The Gardens of Eden and Allah - which straddle the Southern Alps and feeds major rivers such as the Rakaia and Rangitata in Canterbury and Whanganui.
Researchers say that these glaciers are our water towers and once the snow has melted glaciers help to sustain water flow to our rivers - episodes of hot weather such as the current one are causing changes that point to a concerning future.
"What we're seeing from these current high temperatures is a massive melt-off of snow," says Dr Pascal Sirguey, of the university's surveying school.
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