Heavy snow has covered parts of the South Island and heavy rain warnings are in effect for parts of the North Island as the country is plagued by stormy conditions.
The weather band is expected to affect most of the country, with heavy snowfall, downpours and severe storms forecast.
Snow fell in the Mackenzie Basin and Central Otago Friday morning.
In upland Canterbury south of the Rangitata River, up to 10cm of snow can fall up to 400m and up to 15cm above 700m, MetService said.
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The Queenstown Lakes District may also see some snow up to 400m until Friday 10am, with more above 700m.
There are multiple South Island snowfall warnings for the Alpine passes, including Arthur’s Pass, Porters Pass, and Lindis Pass. Due to snow, Lindis Pass (SH8) is closed from Tarras to Omarama and between Fairlie and Twizel.
SHARLENE MCKINLAY PHOTOGRAPHY
Snow in the village of Mt Cook early this morning.
MetService meteorologist Dan Corrigan warned people to be careful on the roads and avoid traveling where possible.
NZTA also urges caution on Mt Cook Rd (SH80).
Aoraki/Mt Cook Village resident Sharlene McKinlay said it was snowing all night in the area and there was still moderate and persistent snowfall at 6:30 AM.
Sharlene McKinlay/Delivered
Snow falling at the Mt Cook Village in the Mt Cook/Mt Cook National Park.
McKinlay said there was also at least 12 inches of snow on SH80 and only snow plowing was done in the village.
The night’s severe weather in the Mackenzie Basin had also closed schools, cut two stretches of State Highway 8 and halted a bus service.
REBECCA FRENCH/DELIVERED
The community of Omarama, south of Twizel, woke up to snow.
The Bay of Plenty east of Ōpōtiki, along with the mountain ranges of Gisborne to the north of Ruatoria, are among the areas with an orange heavy rain warning for Friday, with as much as 120mm possible in a 16-hour period.
Other areas expected to receive heavy rain for at least part of Friday include Northland, Coromandel Peninsula, Rotorua and Bay of Plenty west of Ōpōtiki.
The Bay of Plenty in the mountain ranges north of Gisborne is expected to suffer the most from the heavy rain, with 80 to 120mm forecast.
“The rain tire is coming to the beaches all over the country [of Gisborne]increasing rainfall and spilling into surrounding rivers, allowing them to rise rapidly,” a MetService spokesperson said Friday morning.
Residents in the area have been warned about the possibility of flooding and slipping, and to exercise caution when driving in the area.
MetService forecasts rain, some heavy, for Auckland for much of Friday, while rain is expected in Wellington in the morning and then turns to showers in the afternoon.
“It’s going to rain pretty much all over the country today,” said the spokesman.
“Everywhere is wet.”
TOM LEE/STUFF/Waikato Times
Wet weather in Hamilton CBD this morning as a rain tire moves across the North Island.
Even the sunniest spot in the country is in danger of chattering, with a heavy rain warning for Taranaki Maunga.
MetService issued the warning on Thursday, forecasting 80-120mm of rain to fall on the mountain on Friday between 1am and 2pm.
“Peak intensities of 1-25 mm per hour can be expected in the morning,” it said.
There will also be a strong wind watch for south Taranaki Friday from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m., with northerly winds expected to approach the severe storm in exposed areas.
Christchurch is expected to have some morning rain on Friday, decreasing in the afternoon and clearing in the evening.
Snow is forecast to continue for several days in the Canterbury highlands – up to 500m on Saturday, just a few snow showers on Sunday, then possibly 400m to the south and 1000m to the north on Monday, and more Tuesday.
Southern Lakes and Central Otago could have up to 500 feet of snow Saturday, MetService said.
Heavy rain is also possible on Saturday in Buller, western Tasman, the Marlborough Sounds, Kāpiti and Wellington, while severe north-westerly storms are possible for Wellington and Wairarapa.
Despite the wet conditions, many places in Aotearoa will have warmer temperatures, due to the warm air traveling across the country with the rain.
“The North Island expects temperatures to be four to six degrees warmer than you would expect for this time of year,” MetService said.
Whangarei will be the hottest place to be in New Zealand on Friday, topping the charts with a maximum of 20C, closely followed by Auckland at 19C.
“We will probably feel the warm temperatures especially at night, because of the amount of cloud cover, because clouds act like a blanket and push up the temperature,” the spokesperson said.
Conditions were expected to ease on Sunday, but more heavy rain was possible Monday for many North Island areas and for the north of the South Island, MetService said.
Heavy rain also fell on many parts of the North Island and some eastern parts of the South Island on Tuesday.
Heavy snow may fall above 500 meters on Tuesday in Canterbury, North Otago, Dunedin and Clutha.