MetService says around 1845 lightning strikes were recorded overnight as thunderstorm watches remain in place for parts of the North Island today.
Yesterday, severe thunderstorms battered Auckland as a humid airmass continued to linger over the country - sparking power and internet outages, minor flooding and dozens of weather-related callouts.
A severe thunderstorm watch remained in place this morning for Northland, Auckland, Great Barrier Island, Coromandel Peninsula, Waikato, Waitomo, Taumarunui, Bay of Plenty, Rotorua, Taupo, Taranaki, Taihape, Wanganui until midday.
At midday, another severe thunderstorm watch would kick in for Taranaki, Taihape, Wanganui, Manawatū, Tararua, Kapiti-Horowhenua, Wairarapa and Wellington until 6pm today.
MetService meteorologist Samkelo Magwala told 1News there wasn't as much total rain accumulation overnight as forecast, but there was still some "significant" rain.
"In terms of total accumulation, we didn't get as much, but in terms of hourly accumulation, we got some significant rain especially from last evening and overnight," he said.
He said some areas over the central and upper North Island received between 20mm and 33mm in just one hour around 5am today.
"Otherwise, most areas received something like 10mm to 15mm per hour," he said.
Magwala said there were a decent number of lightning strikes too, recording around 1845 strikes over the North Island, peaking in the early hours of this morning.
He said thunderstorms were likely to continue throughout the day.
"From this afternoon, we'll see those thunderstorms starting to pop up even in the South Island, especially in those high-lying areas," he said.
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