Winter blast

Single-digit max temperatures in the south and snow on the hills means road snowfall warnings are in place across many of our alpine passes, MetService says.

Thunderstorms in the west and south of the country are expected to continue into Friday, with MetService warning “heavy rain, hail and damaging gusts are all possible”. The South Island may also see some snow across Friday and the weekend in Lewis Pass, Arthur’s Pass, Crown Range Rd and Milford Rd. Heavy rain, hail, and damaging gusts are all possible in the presence of a thunderstorm ☔ Wet and windy sums up the weather forecast for most regions across the country for Friday and into the weekend, with MetService warning “ the run of unsettled weather is just beginning”. There is a strong wind watch in place for Wairarapa – excluding the Tararua District – Wellington and Marlborough Sounds on Thursday evening, which will stay in place until Friday afternoon. On Thursday, New Zealand started to feel the impacts of MetService’s predicted “winter blast”, expected to hit west of the South Island, Northland and eastern Bay of Plenty, with heavy rain, gales and frosty temperatures all making an appearance.