Strong swells start to subside
Swimming still too hazardous at local beaches
Large cyclone and eruption-driven swells have started to ease along the Mount Maunganui and Pa¯pa¯moa coasts but beachgoers are still being advised to avoid the water.
Surf Life Saving NZ search and rescue manager Allan Mundy said the water was still too hazardous for swimming.
He said people wanting to swim should consider lakes or harbours until the large and unpredictable swells in the sea had calmed down.
Mundy said it was also important for those walking on the beach to be careful at high tide and walk on dry sand to avoid being knocked over by a large wave.
He urged the public to obey any signage, including regarding whether Moturiki Leisure Island and Mauao were safe for walkers.
Mauao’s base track and Moturiki reopened yesterday after closing on Sunday due to rough seas.
Tauranga City Council said it would reassess the reopening an hour before high tide at 8pm last night and put signs and barriers in place if the situation changed.
Metservice meteorologist Ashlee Parkes said the most significant period of swells in the Bay of Plenty has “come and gone” with a four-metre swell easing to 3m and continuing to ease from there.
The swells were a combination of Cyclone Cody passing
New Zealand and the eruption of underwater volcano HungaTonga-ha’apai in Tonga on Saturday night.
She said Cyclone Cody would have no further impact on the Bay of Plenty’s weather with the western edge of the storm over the East Cape.
Tauranga would continue to have clear skies, light winds and high temperatures until mid-thursday, she said.