Flood warning for Westland, periods of heavy rain for parts of New Zealand

Parts of New Zealand are about to get battered by a series of fronts bringing heavy falls, with Westland set to get the heaviest rain, MetService is warning.

A Severe Weather Warning on Tuesday morning is forecasting moist northwesterlies to bring periods of heavy rain to parts of New Zealand.

Areas set to get a drenching include parts of Auckland, Coromandel Peninsula, Bay of Plenty, Tasman and Mt Taranaki.

But the area most likely to get hit by heavy rain is Westland, around and south of Otira, especially about the ranges, with slips and surface flooding possible.

The rain is expected to hit from 7pm Tuesday to 11pm Wednesday, with 130mm to 160mm of rain expected over this time around the ranges and 70mm to 110mm expected nearer the coast.

The falls will peak Wednesday afternoon and evening as an active front moves east across the area, with peak rates of 10-20mm an hour, MetService warns.

This heavy rain may cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly, possible surface flooding and slips, and hazardous driving conditions.

Meanwhile, moist northerlies will continue to bring rain to Auckland around the Hunua Range, Great Barrier Island, as well as Coromandel Peninsula, with the rain expected to clear by 3pm Tuesday.

Periods of heavy rain will affect parts of the Bay of Plenty west of Te Puke until 9pm, Tuesday.

Rain will also continue in Tasman, northwest of Motueka, until 10pm Tuesday.

Mt Taranaki is expected to be hit by 16 hours of heavy rain from 2pm Tuesday, while the Buller ranges are set to get 24 hours of rain from 9pm Tuesday.