August 1973: August resembled July in having an unusually high frequency of easterly winds, but it was much wetter and also rather cloudy. It will be remembered especially for the heavy snow on the 5th and 6th in the upper Canterbury Plains and parts of the Mackenzie Basin and inland North Otago. The greatest depth over the plains was about 3 feet, as at Methven, but it was double this value in some areas, as at
Sherwood Downs, north of Fairlie; in these areas it was the heaviest snow since 1945. Thousands of stock were lost; power and telephone lines came down and some secondary roads were blocked for several days. For a considerable part of the country this was the first wet month after 9 dry months, and many farmers appreciated the rain for this reason.
Rainfall: Rainfall was above normal over most of the South Island. In an area extending 40 miles inland from just west of Christchurch to just northwest of Dunedin it was 3-5 times the normal value; for some stations it was the wettest August in 60 years of observation. In the North Island rainfall was mainly close to normal. However, it was more than double the average in northern Hawkes Bay and southern Gisborne. In Canterbury and North Otago the wettest period coincided with the snow on the 5th-6th. Akaroa received 301mm in these 2 days, and many stations had 100-200mm. Some heavy falls were also recorded in northern Hawkes Bay on the 7th-8th, including a 2-day total of 92mm at Wairoa, with some flooding there.
Some totals: Gisborne 220mm (2nd highest), Stratford Mountain House 934mm, Franz Josef 515mm, Nelson Aero 185mm, Darfield 243mm (highest), Tekapo 124mm, Timaru 129mm; Alexandra 29mm.
Temperatures: Temperatures were above normal by about 1C over the North Island and they were also somewhat above normal in northern and western districts of the South Island. They were colder than normal by up to 2C in inland Canterbury.
21.7C maximum at Tokomaru Bay on the 12th,
-11.2C minimum at Ophir on the 1st.
Sunshine: Sunshine was mainly 20-50 hours below normal, with highest departures in some eastern districts from Canterbury northward. However, it was close to normal in Otago and Southland.
[Some totals: Kaitaia 126, Kerikeri 128, Whangarei 111, Leigh 121, Auckland 136, Tauranga 111, Whakatane 146, Taupo 97, Opotiki 141, Auckland Aero 132, Hamilton 102, New Plymouth Aero 134, Masterton 97, Gisborne 100, Napier 116, Wairoa 116, Paraparaumu 123, Ohakea 120, Kairanga 121, Palmerston North 107, Levin 123, Wellington 109, Stratford 106, Ohakune 97, Wanganui 119, Takaka 156, Westport 118, Hokitika 119, Greymouth 112, Haast 131, Riwaka 162, Nelson 151, Blenheim 177, Grassmere 159, Kaikoura 121, Mt Cook 84, Mt John 140, Methven 126, Christchurch 108, Tekapo n/a, Timaru 127, Waimate 135, Omarama 128, Palmerston 135, Dunedin Aero 135, Dunedin 131, Oamaru 143, Queenstown 126, Alexandra 132, Invercargill 130, Raoul Is 163,
Campbell Is 8.5 {2nd lowest}, Chatham Is 78].
Sources: NZ Met. Misc. pub. 107 (Climatological table, NZ Gazette) and NZ Met. Misc. pub. 109 (Meteorological Observations).
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July 30, 2019, 01:59:47 PM