Motorists urged to drive safely after day of snow

Many roads around Dunedin and the surrounding areas are becoming icy as temperatures plunge in the early evening after a day of snow, and motorists are being urged to drive with caution.

• Coming snow to help kick-start season: skifield

• Did it snow at your place? Send your photos to odt.online@odt.co.nz 

Snow was still falling in Dunedin by mid-afternoon as freezing conditions caused chaos on southern roads this morning. 

A crash in icy conditions on Stuart St in Dunedin caused delays for citybound motorists from about 8.25am.

Many hill suburb roads have frozen and motorists are being asked to take extra care or avoid travel if possible. 

In Tapanui, heavy snow left some residents without power for much of the morning. 

And if the snow wasn't enough, a heavy rain watch has been issued for Clutha and Southland from 3am until 6pm Monday. 

The polar blast bringing snow, wind and rain across large swathes of the South is expected to be shoved east by an incoming ridge of high pressure in the next few days.

"It’s probably a good start for the school holidays," MetService meteorologist Paul Ngamanu said.

"Couple of movie days … then once this flow clears off there’ll probably be some pretty good ski conditions."

The movies had to wait for some Waverly residents though, with Aurora Energy reporting a power outage affecting more than 120 customers from 10.30pm Saturday night.

Power was restored at about 2.30pm Sunday. 

Dunedin buses have also been affected, with the 5/6 Pine Hill route unable to travel up Pine Hill. The route will start and stop from Bank St. 

The route 15 Ridge Runner and 37/38 Concord buses are suspended until further notice. 

Route 33 from Corstorphine and routes 44 and 55 from St Kilda will now only travel as far as the Dunedin Bus Hub. 

Three Mile Hill Rd in Dunedin closed due to snow at about 2.30am.

The following road closures were also put in place shortly after 4.30pm today due to snow - Mount Cargill Rd (north from Upper Junction Rd), Highcliff Rd (from McKerrow St to Pukehiki), Scroggs Hill Rd, and Law Rd (from SH1 to Scroggs Hill Rd).

Blueskin Rd between Mount Cargill and Waitati was closed due to snow at about 6.10pm, and Waitati Valley Rd was closed due to snow at about 8.30pm.

Waka Kotahi warned of black ice on SH1 between Dunedin and East Taieri at about 8.45am. 

The Dunedin to Waitati Highway (SH1) at Leith Saddle is now closed due to snow. The road is likely to remain closed overnight with an update expected on Monday. It was earlier closed at about 2.30am but reopened at about 6.30am this morning.

Two vehicles, including at least one truck, became stuck on SH8 in the icy conditions. 

Manuka Gorge was down to one lane but both lanes had reopened at about 4.10pm, a police spokeswoman said.

There were delays at Tunnel Hill on the Beaumont Highway.

Police advised it could take some time for the road to be fully cleared. 

Grit trucks are out to try to ease the dangerous conditions.

Snow fell on Crown Range Rd overnight but the route remains open despite the freezing, icy conditions though chains are required for all motorists. 

Periods of snow are likely to continue throughout Sunday and 2-4cm may settle on the road.

A Queenstown Lakes District Council spokesman said extreme care was required.

In South Otago, as much as 30cm of snow has fallen around Tuapeka West.

Milford Rd (State Highway 94) from Te Anau to Milford, reopened shortly after 10am Sunday but will close overnight from 4.30pm.

SH93 between Clinton and Mataura has also reopened. 

State Highway 87 between Kyeburn and Outram and SH85 between Kyeburn and Macraes Road Turnoff are both closed due to heavy snow, with the next update expected 3pm Monday. No detours are available, and motorists are advised to avoid the area or delay their journey if possible.

MetService issued a raft of heavy snow and road snowfall warnings for across southern and central parts of the South Island. 

A heavy snowfall warning remains in place for areas of Otago south of the line from Queenstown to Alexandra and Mosgiel, as well as for Southland and Stewart Island. 

A Clutha District Council spokeswoman said a "fair amount" of snow had fallen in the district's higher altitude areas, including West Otago, Hillend, Owaka Valley and Waipori. 

Strong winds had also caused deep snow drifts in some areas. 

More snow is forecast for the rest of the day and CDC contractors are monitoring the situation. There were no plans to start clearing roads at this stage, the spokeswoman said. 

The heaviest snow was expected from Saturday afternoon through to Sunday evening, with a whopping 20-30cm possible above 300m and lesser amounts down to 100m. 

For the latest road conditions, check the Waka Kotahi NZTA website. 

 - Additional reporting NZ Herald