This was published 9 years ago
Skiing in New Zealand: South Island gets first snow fall
A tractor clears snow on State Highway 94 south of Te Anau as stranded tourists wait for the road to be cleared during heavy morning snow on state Highway 94.Credit: Barry Harcourt/Fairfax NZ
Winter is making an early appearance, with snow to low levels expected in parts of the South Island and icy winds, thunderstorms and hail elsewhere.
A heavy-snow warning remained in place on Monday morning for southern Fiordland, Southland and Clutha, where 10 to 15 centimetres of snow was expected above 400 metres.
About 10cm of snow appeared to have fallen on the Homer Tunnel in Fiordland, and temperatures in parts of inland Southland plummeted to about 1 degree Celsius, MetService severe weather forecaster Andy Downs said.
Morning snow in Te Anau.Credit: Barry Harcourt/Fairfax NZ
There were sleety showers and snow above 100m, would probably likely continue throughout the day and overnight, though the snow intensity was expected to ease overnight.
"It certainly is fairly exceptional having a cold outbreak with snow to these very low levels early on," Downs said.
"It's a good month or two earlier than we might ordinarily expect."
Road snowfall warnings were in place for Lewis Pass, Arthurs Pass, Porters Pass, Lindis Pass and Milford Road.
The NZ Transport Agency said State Highway 94 from Te Anau to Milford Sound was closed at Hollyford and the Chasm because of snow.
Police said there had been reports of snow on the Crown Range Road between Queenstown and Wanaka.
A severe-weather watch was also in place for heavy snow above 300m in remaining parts of Fiordland and Otago through to Tuesday morning.
For eastern Otago, particularly coastal areas of Clutha and Dunedin, cold rain was expected to turn to snow above 200m on Monday morning.
Temperatures in Invercargill and Dunedin would struggle to reach double digits, with highs of 8C and 9C forecast, showers with hail and a chance of thunder, and a strong cold southwest wind.
Showers and hail were expected to reach parts of South Canterbury late in the afternoon.
Christchurch should reach 12C, with afternoon showers and hail, and a risk of thunder, and the city should also brace for a strong cold southwesterly.
Meanwhile a pair of cold fronts were expected to move onto the North Island on Monday morning, bringing a burst of heavy rain to western and central areas, MetService said.
A severe-weather warning was in force for the Tararua Ranges north of Wellington where a burst of heavy rain and possible thunderstorms were expected until mid-morning.
There was a moderate risk of thunderstorms from Northland to Kapiti, with a lesser risk for central areas and Wellington.
Wellington could expect a showery day, some heavy, with an afternoon southerly change and a high of 16C.
In Auckland, morning rain was expected to turn to heavy falls, with a high of 19C.
Sign up for the Traveller Deals newsletter
Get exclusive travel deals delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up now.