Have you been hit hard by bad weather?
Send us your weather pictures here
KEY POINTS:
Snow, rain and gale force winds continued to batter parts of the country today.
Police urged travellers to be cautious as roads in the central and southern South Island were affected by snow and ice and roads around Christchurch were affected by surface water as heavy rain and high tides caused problems.
In the North Island snow closed the Desert Road and police urged motorists using the Rimutaka Hill road to exercise extreme care due to reports of black ice conditions within 200m of the summit.
On the North Island central plateau snow was affecting higher roads and motorists were advised to take care and watch for ice particularly in shaded areas and on bridge decks.
The Desert Road and State Highway 49 in Waiouru have been closed until further notice because of heavy snow on the road.
MetService forecast the wind and rain to ease in North Canterbury and Kaikoura but severe gale southerlies and heavy rain were set to continue for Wellington and Wairarapa until tonight.
The MetService severe weather warning said gusts of 130km/h could damage trees, powerlines and lift roofs.
Driving conditions remained hazardous in coastal Marlborough and northern Canterbury.
Police said trucks, campervans and vehicles towing trailers should take extreme care in the area.
Rough seas in the Cook Strait have caused the cancellation of Interislander ferry services this morning.
Interislander spokesman Nigel Parry said the 9am sailing out of Wellington and the 10am out of Picton were both cancelled and the situation would be reviewed later this morning to decide whether the afternoon sailings would take place.
He said "rough seas" with swells up to seven metres were responsible for the cancellations which affected a "few hundred" passengers.
"Those with cars have gone home to re-book...some (passengers) are waiting at the ferry terminal to see what the conditions are this afternoon and they are well catered for."
Police also advised that weather conditions on all roads around Mt Ruapehu had deteriorated considerably and driving conditions were becoming extremely unsafe.
Temporary closures for safety reasons were in place with the Desert Road closed until further notice and State Highway 4 from the intersection of SH49 through to National Park was closed while roading contractors assess the conditions.
"This means that access around either side of Mt Ruapehu is closed. Motorists planning travel on these routes will need to use alternative roads or delay travel."
Slips were also partially blocking parts of State Highway 1, south of Kaikoura in the Ferniehurst and Domett areas.
About 24 Air New Zealand flights into and out of Wellington Airport have been cancelled because of the rough weather.
An airport spokesman said the airlines were being disrupted "quite badly" and the situation was being "judged by the minute".
He said check-in had not been closed but the weather was "pretty bad and could last".
Air NZ spokeswoman Tracy Palmer said 12 arrival and 12 departure flights had been cancelled.
Most of them were run by link carriers, including Air Nelson and Mt Cook Airlines.
She said the Air NZ website provided up-to-date information.
- NZPA
