Don't expect a let up in the cold winds and heavy snow blasting the country, warns the Metservice. Much colder air was expected to move onto southern New Zealand this afternoon...

Photos from NZ Herald readers of weather across the country.

MetService has issued a Severe Thunderstorm Watch for Auckland and Northland tonight.

Wild weather will continue to lash much of the country over coming days, the Metservice warns. A front is expected to hit the country tonight and tomorrow and the more fronts should bring gales and heavy rain until Wednesday.

A Warriors league player was one of the first on the scene after the tornado tore through an Albany mall...

An expert says NZ's tornadoes are almost impossible to track as they are small, localised events.

Wairoa residents may not have water for days after a landslip damaged the town's main supply.