Time to get up as Arctic storm brings cold temperatures to Wellington

The puffer jackets will have to stay put in Wellington as a cold snap will bring temperatures down to a few digits and even bring snow in some areas on Thursday.

It was only 6.2 degrees C at 4:55 p.m. Wednesday, but MetService said that with the wind chill added, it felt like just 2 degrees C as a cold wind from Antarctica poured into the country.

WithService has issued a heavy snow guard for Wairarapa including the Tararua Range south of Mount Bruce and the eastern hills of Wellington. The snow is expected to reach sea level and can be heavy up to above 200 meters.

There is also a warning that the Remutaka Hill Road will receive 4cm to 6cm of snow and it could be on the road from midnight Wednesday.

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Meteorologist Dan Corrigan said temperatures in Wellington in the morning would be between five and eight degrees in the low single digits. On average, the maximum daytime temperature in the first week of October in Wellington is 14.7 degrees.

However, Corrigan also said the temperature “feels like” would drop below freezing until noon due to the wind chill caused by the southerly wind.

“We give off heat that warms the air around us and a small layer around our bodies,” he said. “In warm conditions it stays close to the skin, but when it blows, that layer is blown away and quickly replaced by really cold air.”

Snow is also a possibility in Wellington City and most likely to happen in the early hours of Thursday, but how long it lasts will depend on the wind direction. But those who want to see snow in Wairarapa will probably get their wish.

“We have great certainty that snow will have an impact tonight and tomorrow,” Corrigan said. “We’re looking at snow in Masterton and heavy snow 200 meters above sea level.”

Most Metlink services will continue except buses replacing trains from Wairarapa with the network operator’s acting general manager Tim Shackleton saying passengers should consider working from home tomorrow and postponing travel.

Emma Speight of Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, said State Highway 2 over the Remutaka Hill could be closed and road users on the lower North Island should prepare for winter driving conditions.

The AA said for: winter drivingdrivers should drive slower than normal, avoid abrupt braking and be aware of icy conditions.

A spokesperson for Wellington Electricity said they had taken steps to control the load in case there was strong demand and that there would be standby shifts to respond to unplanned outages.

Wellington City Council spokesman Richard MacLean said that while the council will not open temporary shelters for the homeless community, they will keep a close eye on them along with organizations helping them.