After a balmy start to the day in parts of the South, temperatures plummeted this afternoon, as a "punchy" cold change moved through.
MetService showed Dunedin sitting on 21.5C about 10am, marginally behind the country's warmest centre, Napier, on 22C.
However, the forecaster said a "cold, punchy southerly" was set to bring a cold snap to much the country today and tomorrow, "particularly for our South Island east coasters".
MetService meteorologist Katie Hillyer said: “It’s a real cold snap, with Tuesday's maximums in the east coast of the South Island about 10 degrees less than Monday's.”
MetService's website this morning showed Dunedin dropping from 21C to about 10C by 6pm today, including a drop from 16C to 13C between 2pm and 3pm.
The forecaster said to expect "a strong wind change and a period of heavy rain on the change".
"Have a look at the surrounding mountains because by tomorrow there will be a fresh dusting of snow about."
For those in inland Otago, the next few nights look to be very chilly, with temperatures in the low single digits for the likes of Alexandra, Queenstown and Cromwell.
In an update about 11am, MetService issued a road snowfall warning for the Lindis Pass (State Highway 8), valid from 2am to 8am tomorrow.
"Snow is forecast to lower to 800 metres tonight, and 1 to 2 cm of snow may settle on the road near the summit during Tuesday morning."
Wild weather for Easter for many
Hillyer said the rain was due to stall and weaken over the central South Island on Tuesday as northeasterlies build over the country ahead of a subtropical low-pressure system from the north.
From Wednesday, Northland, Auckland and Coromandel were under a strong wind watch for gale northeasterlies, and a heavy rain watch, and it was likely these would be upgraded to orange warnings, she said.
The North Island could expect the worst weather on Thursday, she said.
"With plenty of travellers on the road over the Easter break, people should be extra cautious and keep a close eye on the forecast, particularly with the exodus from Auckland lining up with the most significant weather.
"This windy system is long-lived, with periods of heavy rain, so accumulations are expected to be impressive."
While the South Island could also expect intermittent wet weather over the next week, it was the top of the Island, particularly Nelson and Tasman, that were set to cop some heavy rain from Thursday, continuing into the weekend, she said.
"While we’ll see a few breaks in the rain, it is a long-lived system, with windy and rainy conditions to continue over the country until next week."
- APL
