Wild weather: Warnings issued as strong winds batter Southland

By RNZ

An orange strong wind warning is in force for Southland, with gales causing trees to topple and lifting roofs.

MetService said the far south was bearing the brunt of the showers and wind, with gusts of 115km/h recorded at Invercargill today.

Power has been restored to about 10 towns but a further 10 are still suffering outages.

Trees were down across the region, two flights out of Invercargill this afternoon were cancelled and extra care was needed on State Highway 87 between Mosgiel and Kyeburn and State Highway One from Waitaki Bridge to Clinton.

The far south is bearing the brunt of the showers and wind today.

The strongest gusts recorded at Invercargill so far today have been 115km/hhttps://t.co/qHyE5zzql5 pic.twitter.com/9aWK8gfJLx

— MetService (@MetService) September 3, 2022

Firefighters have been busy in Bluff after a new roof lifted off a house.

The Cardrona and Treble Cone ski fields were closed due to gale-force winds.

There were snowfall warnings for the Lewis, Arthur's and Porters passes, the Milford Road and State Highway One from Dunedin to Waitati .

In the North Island, snow is also affecting the Napier-Taupo Road, the Desert Road and the Remutaka Hill Road.

A strong wind warning has been issued for coastal Clutha, Southland and Stewart Island, with Metservice saying winds could gust up to 120km/h.

A strong wind watch also covers the Canterbury High Country, and remaining parts of Otago (except North Otago) and Southland.

On Monday, heavy rain and strong to gale northeasterlies are forecast to move onto the upper North Island .

A heavy rain watch will be in place for Northland, still reeling from last month's storm in the Far North.

Snow showers are possible on Arthur's Pass over the 12 hours from 3am this morning, and snow is expected to accumulate on parts of the Milford Road overnight.

- RNZ