Torrential rain and flooding in April has contributed to one of the wettest months in years for Tauranga.

According to figures released by NIWA today, Tauranga had two and a half times its normal April rainfall last month recording 284mm of rain.

Torrential rain caused flash flooding across Tauranga last month.

The Bay of Plenty as a whole received more than 150 per cent of the normal amount of rain usually recorded in April.

Northland, Auckland, Kapiti Coast, Canterbury and coastal Southland also recorded above average rainfalls.

'North-westerly fronts resulted in extremely heavy rainfall in the Western Bay of Plenty on April 20 and in the Nelson and Tasman regions on April 21.”

NIWA says April was characterised by lower pressures than usual over New Zealand and to the south and west of the country, with higher pressures than normal to the east of the Chatham Islands.

'This means more north-westerly winds than normal affected the country, resulting in a very warm month for many regions.”

On the weekend April 20, Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty was hit by torrential rain causing flash floods around the city.

At the time of the flooding, Tauranga Fire Senior Station Officer Phil Price said he hadn't seen anything like it in a few years.

From Friday, April 19 to Monday, April 22 about 200millimetres fell in the region.

NIWA reports average temperatures were also above average for April with most places in the North Island recording 1.2degrees Celsius above the norm.

Percentage of normal rainfall for April 2013.