State Highway 4 was closed due to a truck crash 1.5 kilometres north of National Park.
State Highway 4 was closed due to a truck crash 1.5 kilometres north of National Park.
A night of cold weather and snowfall caused chaos on roads in Whanganui and the surrounding regions.
Temperatures dropped to as low as -3.7C on the Desert Road and -2.4C in Waiouru, and -1.9C in National Park on Wednesday night.
Conditions didn’t get much warmer over Thursday either, with National Park at 2.1C and Waiouru at 1C as of 3pm Thursday.
Snowfall in the Ruapehu district caused multiple state highways to be closed.
MetService meteorologist John Law said the heavy snow had been caused by cold southwesterly winds and showery conditions moving through the central north island.
He said these conditions were perfect for producing snow.
“It’s that combination of the cold air and the showery weather which has been the perfect weather to give us some snowfall to the higher areas of your patch,” Law said.
State Highway 1 was closed between Rangipo and Waiouru from 5.35pm Wednesday to 3pm Thursday due to snowfall, according to Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency.
Waka Kotahi also reported State Highway 4 between Tohunga Junction and Manunui was closed at 3.30am on Thursday due to a truck crash, and State Highway 47 between National Park and Tūrangi was closed at 5.35am due to a truck rolling over.
State Highway 46 between Tongariro and Rangipou was closed at 7.19am due to snowfall.
Snowfall in National Park. Photo/Supplied
As of 11.50am on Thursday, SH4 was re-opened, with the potential for delays due to ongoing efforts to recover the truck.
According to a final update by Waka Kotahi at 3pm on Thursday, SH47 and SH46 remained closed until further notice.
Rangitīkei District Council reported Taihape-Napier Rd was closed due to snowfall around 12.20pm on Thursday and as of 3.45pm, had not been reopened.
Compared to areas further inland, Whanganui had a relatively warm night with an overnight low of 5.5C recorded at Whanganui Airport.
Further inland at Flat Hills, the low for the night was around 2.4C.
Whanganui District Council said Kauarapaoa Rd was closed south of the Mayo Farm due to a slip.
The council expects to have the road re-opened by late Friday; in the meantime, access to the north end of the road is available via Rangitatau Rd.
There were also reports of snow falling in Kai Iwi and the back blocks of Waverley, with students at Kai Iwi school finding their playground covered in hailstones early in the morning.
Law said Finer conditions were expected for the rest of the week and most of the weekend, with a high-pressure system moving its way across the region.
“There’ll be some dry, fine and fairly settled weather as we go through tomorrow and the next few days as well,” he said.
Later on Sunday cloudier conditions and the occasional inland shower were expected.
However, those clear skies would bring cool overnight temperatures, with overnight lows of 5C for Friday, 2C for Saturday, and 8C for Sunday as the cloud rolls in.
Further inland temperatures are expected to drop even further, with lows for Waiouru of -2C on Friday, and -4C on Saturday and Sunday.
Finn Williams is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. He joined the Chronicle in early 2022 and regularly covers stories about business, events and emergencies. He also enjoys writing opinion columns on whatever interests him.
