Christchurch experienced its driest March in 12 years with 18.2 millimetres of rain – about half the average rainfall (35.5mm) for March. Tinder dry conditions across Canterbury and Otago have pushed the risk of fire in most areas to extreme levels, triggering an urgent warning from Fire and Emergency New Zealand. There was no reprieve from the sweltering temperatures on Easter Monday, further driving up the extreme fire danger and putting fire crews in the south on high alert. This triggered a severe weather warning from the MetService for the Canterbury high country until 1pm on Monday, and a strong wind watch for Christchurch and the Canterbury plains for most of the morning. Of the 74 areas monitored across Canterbury and Otago, at least seven areas were above the BUI’s extreme fire risk threshold.

Source: Stuff April 05, 2021 02:29 UTC