An ice-cold snap has hit the South Island this morning, blanketing the fire-hit Mackenzie country in snow and shutting schools across inland Canterbury.
After days of record-high temperatures with the mercury hitting a summery 23.5C in Blenheim, 23C in Timaru and 22.8C in Hanmer Forest, the South Island is waking to snow across much of mid-Canterbury and parts of Southland and Central Otago.
The change in weather overnight has seen the number of fire crews scaled down, even with cloud cover preventing helicopters with monsoon buckets taking to the air today.
"It's made a terrific difference," said Fire and Emergency southern shift manager Andrew Norris.
The fire-fighting command was in the process of being handed over to the Department of Conservation and State Highway 80, shut since Sunday, was hoped to be reopened today, depending on snowfall.
This morning thousands of pupils were given a day off as heavy snow settled across the region, with the Ministry of Education saying 22 schools and early childhood centres were closed due to the adverse weather. It included the aptly named Methven school, Our Lady of the Snows.
With temperatures struggling to get above single digits, Timaru was a chilly 1.6C at 9am. Yesterday it reached 22C.
Likewise Christchurch, Dunedin, Queenstown and Invercargill shivered on 5C or lower. As the day progressed temperatures barely budged.
Residents in the Southland gold mining settlement of Waikaia woke to a winter wonderland this morning. Photo / Mairi Dickson
Heavy snow warnings are in force for the rest of the day across Canterbury down to the south of the Rakaia River, with 20cm expected to fall above 500m.
There are a number of road snowfall warnings in place for alpine passes, including Haast and Lindis Passes and Milford and Crown Range Rds. MetService is warning it is likely to disrupt travel and could damage trees and powerlines.
2nd straight day of record warmth 🌡️
1️⃣ 23.5˚C, Blenheim — highest winter temp (records to 1947)
Meanwhile, further north a strong-wind watch is in place, with gales howling across Hawke's Bay, the Tararua District and northern Wairarapa.
UPDATE 6:05AM, TUE 1 SEP A strong wind warning remains in place for #SH2 Remutaka Hill. Please take extra care, especially if you are in a high-sided vehicle or riding a motorcycle. ^EHhttps://t.co/mFGsDf1dHV
— Waka Kotahi NZTA Wellington (@WakaKotahiWgtn) August 31, 2020
