There was a lot of rain on Taranaki Maunga last month with our gauge at Dawson Falls recording 43% more than normal – and nearly a metre of rain for the month.
The monitoring station recorded 985mm of rain and there was 811mm at the North Taranaki Visitors Centre gauge – that's 20% more than usual. For non-Maunga sites, the average was 149.4mm, 18% less than usual, ranging from 57% less rain at Waitōtara at Rimunui Station and 15% more at Pātea at Stratford.
Year-to-date rainfall is lowest at Waitōtara at Hawken Rd with 46% less rainfall than normal, Pātea at Stratford has had the highest year-to-date rainfall with 1% less than normal. Year-to-date rainfall has been 24% less than normal on average across all rain gauges in the region.
Mean river flows for May were 6.2% lower than typical values, low flows were 56.3% greater and high flows 0.6% lower than typical values while mean river (non-mountain) water temperatures were 12.3°C, an average of 0.3°C warmer than long-term May values.
The average air temperature for the region (excluding Te Maunga sites) was 12.7°C, which is 0.4°C warmer than long-term May averages. The maximum air temperature recorded in May was 21.7°C at Waitōtara at Hawken Rd on 14 May.
May average wind speeds were 12.6km/hr, with average gust strength of 41.7km/hr, these were 0.2km/hr lighter, and 0.7km/hr gustier than the long-term average. The maximum wind gust recorded in May was 91.9km/hr at Taungatara at Eltham Rd on 18 May.
May 2025 rainfall maps
What you should know:
- The site maps show data from a selection of the sites we monitor, but not all of them.
- The distribution maps are based on mathematical modelling and may not accurately represent actual rainfall in some unmonitored areas.
- This is raw data and may not have been subjected to a quality control process. All efforts are made to ensure the integrity of the data, but the Council cannot guarantee its accuracy, or its suitability for any purpose. See the full terms and conditions for the use of environmental data(external link).
MONITORED SITES
RAINFALL DISTRIBUTION
