Weather tracker: historic rainfall wreaks havoc in New Zealand

Auckland has experienced its wettest January since records began, while temperatures plummet in southern USHistoric rainfall hit New Zealand in the past week with a one-in-170-year flooding event hitting Auckland. Auckland airport reported 249mm of rainfall in a 24-hour period on 27 January, with a month’s worth of rainfall falling in in less than an hour. Another station, Albert Park, saw 280mm in one day, with 211mm falling in less than six hours.These totals are more than 8.5 times higher than a typical January, and more than 2.5 times higher than an entire typical summer. Overall, Auckland has seen the wettest January since records began, with more than half a metre of rain falling in places. The rainfall has caused numerous landslips, flooding and damage to roads and properties with four people killed and 350 in need of emergency accommodation. More than 9,000 people are still stranded as flights in and out of Auckland experiencing delays and cancellations.