Parts of the South Island are not out of the woods yet after snowfall closed several state highways and caused power outages today with similar conditions expected on Sunday.
MetService issued an orange heavy snow warning for Canterbury High Country south of the Rakaia River until 5pm and for inland Otago until midday today.
Snow was expected to begin falling this afternoon on Arthur’s Pass (State Highway 73) and Porters Pass (State Highway 73).
A road snowfall warning was also issued for Lindis Pass (SH8).
The South Island woke to icy temperatures as a cold snap arrived. (Source: 1News)
Previously closed SH80 to Aoraki/Mt Cook, SH94 to Milford Sound, SH6 from Haast to Makarora, SH85 from Kyeburn to Omakau and SH87 Mosgiel to Kyeburn have reopened.
NZTA advised road users to “take extra care” due to snow and ice conditions.
“These routes are open but conditions are icy so drivers need to leave plenty of gap when following (double the two second rule) and avoid braking on ice or black ice.
“Places like bridge decks and areas which have not had a chance to defrost today are places to watch towards the end of today and first thing tomorrow.”
Crews pre-emptively set off avalanches near the Homer Tunnel on State Highway 94, also known as the Milford Sound Piopiotahi Highway, and then cleared snow to make the route safe when it reopened.
“Given the volumes of snow in Otago, people who can delay travel, should do so or expect delays, as NZTA roading crews work to clear the highways.
“We appreciate your patience and encourage you to drive to the conditions given this polar blast. We encourage people to plan their journey, given that further areas and highways maybe affected over the weekend as the system moves up and across the country,” the agency said.
Central Otago mayor Tim Cadogan said he has never seen snow come through “this heavy and this late in the season” in 30 years of living in the region.
He said residents were mostly “surprised” to see the massive snow dump.
“People woke up this morning and went ‘what the heck?’, turned the lights on and nothing happened in a lot of our towns and opened the curtains and were just stunned by the amount of snow that had fallen overnight.”
Motorists are being urged to delay non-essential travel, while power is out in some areas. (Source: Breakfast)
The Queenstown Lakes District Council said in a post to social media that the closed Crown Range Rd would reopen at 12pm today.
“Please carry chains and take extreme care if using this route,” it said.
Fallen trees that earlier blocked lanes on Arrowtown-Lake Hayes Rd and Hunter Rd had also been cleared.
“A fallen tree is also fully blocking Arthurs Point Rd between Edith Cavell Bridge and McChesney Bridge,” it said.
“If you need to travel, please take extreme care [and] carry chains and fit them where required.”
If you have video or pictures of the snow, please send them to [email protected]
Power outages
Aurora Energy’s website reported power has been restored to the majority of homes with just a handful now affected this evening, down from around 3500 this morning.
Aurora Energy general manager of operations and network performance Matt Settle told RNZ that Mount Aspiring National Park, Alexandra, Omakau, Crowell, and Clyde areas were all experiencing unplanned power outages that were all “snow-related”.
The Aurora Energy website said there were a number of homes without power this morning, including about 1100 homes in Alexandra, 850 near Lauder, almost 800 homes around Cromwell, and 650 homes near Clyde.
“We have a number of weather-related power outages at the moment and our 24/7 fault crew is working hard to get the power restored as soon as possible,” the website said.
Roads were closed, schools shut and thousands left without power this morning. (Source: 1News)
“We’ll update the outages page on our website with expected restore times as more information becomes available.”
Wakatipu High School based in Queenstown and Dunstan High School in Alexandra, Central Otago both said in online statements that the schools would be closed today due to snow.
‘It’s insane’ – tourist
A Coronet Peak visitor originally from the UK described the amount of snow as “insane”.
“This is the best we’ve seen the whole time we’ve been here all season… We’re heading up Coronet, I’m very excited,” Evie said.
She said her friends were “getting the chains on” while she took in the incredible scenery.
Another person adjusting chains on his tyres told 1News he was hoping for “powdery” conditions on the mountain.