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Met Society Newsletter
For a printable pdf of this newsletter: http://metsoc.rsnz.org/Newsletter/clipsmay2009.pdf
Those members who have chosen the postal option will receive a hard copy of this in their “June” newsletter
Winter's here with a bang
By MATT CALMAN - The Dominion Post 07/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/2390174/Winters-here-with-a-bang
GERARD SMITH
DAY BREAKS: Lightning over the Orongorongos, snapped at 6.15 Wednesday morning from Fortification Rd, above Wellington's Scorching Bay.
Firefighters dealt with minor flooding in Brooklyn and Island Bay yesterday morning and thunder set off a fire alarm in Newtown. Sergeant Mark Oliver, from police central communications, said patrol cars struggled to reach a car accident in Berhampore about 5.30am because of hail on the road. "It was like marbles down Adelaide Rd."
MetService forecaster Allister Gorman said lightning storms had arrived in the capital early this morning after tracking northwards up the South Island overnight.
"In the last 24 hours there have been around 800 lightning flashes, but that's been pretty spread out around the country. Everyone has been getting a little dose of something."
-with CLIO FRANCIS, Stuff.co.nz, with The Press and NZPA (abridged)
'Hi, coastguard? I seem to have run dry'
By MARC GREENHILL - The Press 07/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2390410/Hi-coastguard-I-seem-to-have-run-dry
DAVID HALLETT/The Press
RUN AGROUND: Greg Broom calls for help after his yacht lost its mooring in Moncks Bay and was washed up on South Shore Spit yesterday.
A Christchurch man watched a whirlpool rip his yacht from its Moncks Bay mooring early yesterday. He was forced to watch from the shore because it was too dangerous to approach. "It was almost motoring up on to the mooring like it was under power that's how fast it was going against the tide," Broom said. "It would fire straight ahead and kick around to 90 degrees like somebody was flicking it around in their hand." (abridged)
Tour buses stranded by weather
By John Lewis on Mon, 11 May 2009 Otago Daily Times
More than 80 people were trapped for several hours in three tour buses on the Lindis Pass last night after a wintry blast left the buses stranded on slippery, snowy roads.
Sergeant Wayne Brew, of Oamaru, said the buses were heading from Omarama towards Wanaka when the road became impassable about 7pm.
Police helped get two of the buses turned around and headed back down State Highway 8 to Omarama, but the third was still trapped late last night.
Snow closed the highway from Omarama over the pass to Tarras and closer to Dunedin,
(Abridged)
More icy weather tipped for south
The Southland Times 11/05/2009
BARRY HARCOURT/The Southland Times
White tract: A tractor covered by snow that fell on the road between Nightcaps and Ohai yesterday.
Snow fell to the foothills in Southland, West Otago and Queenstown yesterday, as temperatures rapidly plummeted. The snow is good news for skifields in the Southern Lakes district with The Remarkables reporting a 25cm snow base and Coronet 30cm, while Treble Cone has 20cm mid-mountain, and Cardrona 30cm. (abridged)
Wild weather in Tauranga
By MICHAEL FOX - Stuff.co.nz 11/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2401406/Wild-weather-in-Tauranga
DONNA FORLONG
Tauranga Hail
BURRIED in hail: corner of Concord Ave and Oceanbeach Rd, Papamoa
TWISTER : A tornado ripped through Warkworth
Police have been evacuating the Bayfair Shopping Centre in Tauranga as the severe weather hits. They said the centre was flooding. A spokesman at the Tauranga Fire Station said there had been "extensive damage" to the mall.
Flooding had hit roads in the area, with Senior Sergeant Deirdre Lack of Mt Maunganui Police saying the hail had blocked drains and prevented the heavy rain from draining away.
Tauranga City Council spokesman Marcel Currin said that most of the surface flooding was at Mount Maunganui and Papamoa.
Metservice spokeswoman Kathleen Kozyniak said there had also been thunderstorms and lightning in the Western Bay of Plenty Area. (abridged)
- with MICHAEL FIELD
Storm lashes Bay of Plenty
Monday May 11, 2009 TVNZ ONE News/NZPA
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/cold-snow-tipped-after-twisters-hail-2726755
A storm has hit the Western Bay of Plenty with heavy rain, waterspouts and hail stones the size of a 20 cent coin hitting the area. Just before midday, a violent thunderstorm brought chaos to Papamoa and Mount Maunganui, with hail coating the areas.
There have also been thunderstorms and hail in Tauranga, Whakatane and Opotiki on Monday afternoon. Up to ten centimetres of hail fell in places, blocking drains and flooding several streets and houses. Worst affected were Oceanbeach Road, Concord Avenue and part of State Highway Two. The wild weather also churned up massive offshore twisters and the Bayfair Shopping Centre in Mt Maunganui evacuated 2000 people after a manhole collapsed sending floodwater into the building.
Papamoa residents say they saw several large waterspouts offshore between Motiti Island and Town Point and the winds that accompanied them were horrendous. Mt Maunganui resident Wattie Newtown said he watched five waterspouts, one which lasted five to 10 minutes. He said the hailstorm that followed left the beach looking like it was coated in snow.
Snow's up for winter surfers
By KELLY BURNS - The Dominion Post 12/05/200
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2402566/Snows-up-for-winter-surfers
Sunday News
MAKING THE MOST OF IT: A snowboarder makes the most of a thick blanket of hail to get a tow along Papamoa Beach.
Beaches were turned into a winter wonderland as hailstorms hammered the North Island, prompting snowboarders to hit the sand dunes.
Winter came early in dramatic fashion yesterday as a mini-tornado, hail, rain and snow sent chills across the country. In the Bay of Plenty, the violent storms brought traffic to a standstill, sparked surface flooding and caused thousands of lightning strikes.
More than 2000 people were evacuated from Mt Maunganui's Bayfair shopping mall after hail collapsed part of its roof and heavy rain caused flooding.
Papamoa Primary School is closed today after rain and hail 15 centimetres deep in places blocked drains and flooded classrooms.
Ellen Irvine said marble-sized hailstones hammered the roof of her Papamoa home about midday with such force she thought the windows would break.
Her garden became a "winter wonderland" and hail blanketed Papamoa beach, but then the sun shone and snowboarders made the most of the conditions on the sand dunes..
Whakatane police said lightning struck a tree that landed on a garage, and lightning also hit a fusebox at Paroa Road School. "We've had six inches of hail, it's a bit like a weather-bomb," Sergeant Floyd Pratt said.
A mini-tornado ripped through Warkworth, north of Auckland, reaching estimated speeds of 100kmh and cutting power to the town for about 10 minutes.
Residents in one house escaped unharmed after the tornado pulled the roof off their rented home, scattering the tiles in their backyard and punching holes through the ceiling.
Resident Raewyn Hudson said the tornado knocked over television aerials and birdbaths, uprooted small trees and broke branches.
MetService forecaster Erick Brenstrum said up to 5000 lightning strikes may have hit the Bay of Plenty yesterday.
Skiers were rejoicing at the snowfalls. Mt Ruapehu spokesman Mike Smith said there had been a dramatic change on the ski-fields in the past week, with about 60cm of snow falling at Turoa and 50cm at Whakapapa. (abridged)
Hail costs kiwifruit growers $10m
By NICK CHURCHOUSE - The Dominion Post Last updated 05:00 21/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/2428173/Hail-costs-kiwifruit-growers-10m
BETTER TIMES:
Crop damage from Bay of Plenty's recent freak hail storms are up to $10 million, well in excess of industry rescue funds for weather-hit orchards. Damage assessment is still under way after unseasonal hail storms hit kiwifruit country around Tauranga and Te Puke, but the loss is likely to reach almost three million trays of fruit.
New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers president Peter Ombler said evaluation visits were not complete but at last count 467 orchards were affected. More than three-quarters of those had lost less than 20 per cent of their fruit, but at least 23 had written off their entire crop.
Two fierce hail storms hit localised areas last week, with the second front crossing prime orcharding land pelting ripe crops waiting to be harvested. The impact on the industry as a whole was not major, with damaged fruit only 3 per cent of volume, so international orders would be filled.
But with limited insurance money available for orchardists, some would miss out, Mr Ombler said. The industry held $4 million in reserve each year to help weather affected farmers, split between gold kiwifruit and green kiwifruit growers. Mr Ombler said only 500,000 gold kiwifruit were hit by the hail, but the green harvest was less advanced and at least 2.4 million were damaged. The emergency fund for green kiwifruit would not cover the extent of the damage. (abridged)
Early snow disrupts travel but gives skifields hope
ODT Tue, 12 May 2009
http://www.odt.co.nz/the-regions/otago/55426/early-snow-causes-some-disruption
Paul Speedy, manager of the adults' snowsports school at Coronet Peak, jumps for joy in front of the base building yesterday morning. Photo Supplied.
MetService forecaster Vive Binkoto said a break in the weather was expected this afternoon but another low off the coast of the South Island would bring cold showers to sea level and snow to about 700m tonight.
Coronet Peak ski area manager Hamish McCrostie said he was "thrilled" with the weekend's conditions. Up to 50cm of snow had fallen in the area in the last week.
He said 25cm had fallen at the top of the mountain over Sunday night, and 15cm at the base.
(abridged)
Rivers rising as rain gauge blows its top
By SAM McKNIGHT - The Southland Times 14/05/200
http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/2409448/Rivers-rising-as-rain-gauge-blows-its-top
BARRY HARCOURT/142150
SPLASHING OUT: Persistent rain in the south during the past few days has flooded Invercargill roads, making for hazardous driving.
More than 60 millimetres of rain has fallen in Invercargill during the past four days, a significant amount in such a short period of time, according to the MetService.
Consultant meteorologist Ross Marsden said the service's Invercargill Airport gauge had recorded 62.8mm of rainfall from midnight Sunday to 3pm yesterday. (abridged)
Expected rain puts lake watchers on alert
Southland Times, Timaru Herald 15/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2413268/Expected-rain-puts-lake-watchers-on-alert/
BARRY HARCOURT/The Southland Times
DOWNPOUR: Heavy rain has flooded parts of Southland.
Meridian Energy staff will be keeping a close eye on the weather over the next few days with Upper Waitaki hydro storage lakes already high and heavier rain forecast.
Flooding closed the road from Queenstown to Invercargill yesterday after days of steady rainfall pelted Southland. Regional council environmental director John Threlfall said heavy rain and melting snow could raise lake levels significantly.
- Southland Times, Timaru Herald (abridged)
New Zealand glaciers still growing despite “global warming”
May 18, 2009 NZ Hearld
New Zealand weather patterns mean the Fox Glacier is still growing despite global warming.
Researchers at a three-day science conference starting in Wellington today are looking at implications of new work on climate change.
Geomorphologist Andrew Mackintosh of Victoria University – who was part of new research showing New Zealand glaciers have been heavily influenced by regional atmospheric conditions – has already said people should not assume warming will be uniform over the Earth. “The more we’re learning about the Southern Hemisphere we understand that it has its own climate system that’s somewhat different.”
The researchers also included geologist David Barrell, of GNS Science, and glaciologist Trevor Chinn, of the Alpine and Polar Processes Consultancy, and they found no real correlation between data from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
The Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers are still growing, despite global warming, apparently because of weather patterns bringing more cool, wet conditions to New Zealand.
Such regional climate effects may mean New Zealand will show less warming than the rest of the world over the next 100 years.
Dr Barrell said the New Zealand findings point to the importance of regional shifts in wind directions and sea surface temperatures. (abridged)
Flooding and slips after deluge
By PAUL GORMAN - The Press 18/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/2418478/Flooding-and-slips-after-deluge
David Hallett
In flood: Tim and Sandra Jorgensen, of Darfield watch the Rakaia surge through the Rakaia Gorge.
Raging rivers roared across the South Island yesterday, flooding Omarama, threatening bridges and blocking the main highway south.
Rain fell on already sodden high-country catchments, while melting snow turned the Rangitata, Waitaki and Rakaia rivers into torrents. The Rangitata River near State Highway 1 peaked about 2.30pm, with water bursting through its southern bank, flowing across farmland and roads, closing the highway and forcing motorists to detour inland through Geraldine.
The main trunk railway line was also closed between the Rangitata River and Temuka.
The old Waimakariri River bridge near Kaiapoi was also closed for a time yesterday.
Omarama was on the brink of a Civil Defence emergency yesterday, with 31 people evacuated from the camping ground at 5.30am, along with three residents living near the river. A major slip closed the Lindis Pass, while a slip on the Mt Cook Highway caused problems.
MetService severe weather forecaster Ian Miller said the weather system had brought massive amounts of rain to the West Coast and the Southern Alps. The country's wettest place Cropp River inland from Hokitika had 440 millimetres of rain between midnight Friday and midnight Saturday, with another 106mm from then until 7am yesterday.
More than 300mm had fallen close to Mount Cook village and parts of the Mackenzie Country had about 70mm. (abridged)
Cold blast brings snow
20/05/2009 stuff.co.nz
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2425741/Winter-bites-on-countrys-roads
An icy blast of snowfall and gales has stopped ferries from sailing across the Cook Strait this morning and closed roads around New Zealand.
In Otago, State Highway 87 between Outram and Middlemarch was closed due to snow. The North Island's Desert Road, closed due to snow this morning, reopened about 10am.
The MetService had reports of snow down to 200m, though not in great amounts. However, conditions would ease over the day. (abridged)
Heavy snow forecast for central North Island
Wednesday May 20, 2009 NZ Herald
The Desert Road (pictured) was temporarily closed due to snow earlier today, while some Otago roads remain off-limits to motorists. Photo / Catherine
The central North Island is expected to bear the brunt of a very cold front tonight, with heavy snowfalls expected from Hunterville on the southern foothills of the Central Plateau to the summit of the Desert Road. (abridged)
Hill suburbs affected by wintry blast
Thu, 21 May 2009 ODT
Emma Russell organises a tow truck after her car slid off Dalziel Rd.
Photo by Stephen Jaquiery.
The wintry conditions that left Dunedin streets white yesterday morning are predicted to ease today. Snow and hail fell in the hill suburbs and hail coated footpaths down to sea level. Yesterday's cold weather also brought snow to the skifields in Wanaka and Queenstown and flooding to the Waitaki Bridge Camp from high flows in the Waitaki River.
Temperatures remained in single figures around the region, with the average temperature
(abridged)
Cook Strait swells set to top 12m
21/05/2009 Dom Post
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2428109/Cook-Strait-swells-set-to-top-12m
MARK HOTTON
WHITE OUT: Snow blankets the Crown Terrace, above Arrowtown, where about 15cm of
snow fell.
Twelve-metre swells in Cook Strait and snow showers are forecast as the North Island gets a taste of winter.
A cold southerly blast is expected to cause delays and possible cancellations of ferry sailings till the weekend. Swells peaked at 9m in Cook Strait yesterday. The highest swell recorded in Cook Strait was 14.2m in 2002.
Bluebridge ferry spokeswoman Wendy Pannett said two morning sailings had to be cancelled yesterday because of rough conditions but services resumed at 1pm.
Yesterday's high winds of up to 100kmh forced Meridian Energy to shut its new Makara wind farm to avoid damaging equipment. Some of the 25 turbines were out of action for about an hour at the peak of high winds early yesterday.
Freezing conditions in the central North Island have stranded seven trucks in Tongariro National Park overnight. Police said the Rotorua region had experienced a large hail storm around 7pm. Roads from Nongotaha to Rotorua were covered two inches of slush and drivers should take care. Snow has also begun falling on the Desert Road. Police said it was snowing moderately in the area and contractors were on site clearing roads. Snow is also expected down to 400 metres on the Rimutaka Hill Road near Wellington tonight.
"The whole country is under a very cold south west flow. It's a good taste of winter," MetService forecaster Chris Noble said.
Cold blast set to hang around
Thursday May 21, 2009 ONE News/Newstalk ZB
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/cold-blast-set-hang-around-2748846
Tony Renshaw -Snow on the hills behind Rotorua
There has been chaos on roads in the Central Plateau on Thursday after a fresh dumping of snow, with many trucks left stranded. One driver tried to put his brakes on, lost control and slid off the road. (abridged)
Record May rain keeps roofers busy
By Rebecca Fox on Fri, 22 May 2009 ODT
Marty Duffy, of Jobman, makes the most of the break in the weather to mend a leaky roof in Dunedin yesterday. Photo by Gerard O'Brien.
Dunedin's recent steady rain will see at least one suburb of the city break a 34-year-old rainfall record for May - with 10 days of the month remaining. Balaclava resident John Bradley has been recording rainfall figures for the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) for 34 years and his rain gauge for May so far shows 154mm, just 10mm short of the record 164mm in 1987.
MetService expects another cold front to cross the South Island today, bringing a return to cold southerlies and showers. Snow showers were forecast to 400m or 500m from Southland to Marlborough.
The rain, hail and snow in recent days had meant a busy time for building maintenance contractors, who have been inundated with calls from home and business owners about leaking roofs. (abridged)
Dry ... . . and getting drier
Saturday, 23 May 2009 Roger Handford Gisborne Herald
http://www.gisborneherald.co.nz/Default.aspx?s=3&s1=2&id=11739
Farmers on the East Coast need to be aware the trend in the weather is for more dry years like the ones just experienced, says agricultural climatologist Alan Porteous.
Mr Porteous, of the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Science (Niwa), says while the current drought of eight dry months out of nine is unusual, more dry years can be expected in the Gisborne-East Coast area in the future. But Mr Porteous warns that the trend over the past 100 years points to a drier East Coast climate in the years ahead, with more dry springs likely. Over the past hundred years, scientists have noted the westerly weather patterns becoming more persistent. Since the 1970s, the north and east of the North Island have become 10 percent drier overall and 5 percent drier in the summer, with the eastern regions getting more drought conditions.
“There is an underlying warming trend whereby New Zealand’s climate has warmed by about a degree over the past century,” Mr Porteous says.
Mr Porteous is involved in a number of projects with farmers, particularly in Hawke’s Bay, and says most seem to have a fairly good idea of what is happening with climate. “Some are responding to the challenge and have become involved in programmes such as planting riparian strips, protecting the headwaters of streams and hillside springs.”
Niwa and Mr Porteous have been working with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, AgResearch, other Crown institutes and the Sustainable Farming Fund to tackle these issues. They aim to produce information that is readable and understandable, and plans that are practical and achievable on farm. “Farmers, particularly those on the drier hill country, need to do what they can to prepare for drier years — to adapt their management techniques and to protect water supplies. “This will be a huge challenge — but it also will be a huge opportunity, and I believe New Zealand and its agricultural community is better-placed than most to take advantage of the niche opportunities and chances for diversification that will arise.” (abridged)
It's going to get rough
By BRITTON BROUN - The Dominion Post 23/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2434495/Its-going-to-get-rough
CRAIG SIMCOX/ The Dominion Post
ROCKING AND ROLLING: A ship heads out into Cook Strait from Wellington Harbour yesterday.
A severe wind warning has been issued as gusts of up to 140kmh bear down on Wellington.
MetService forecaster Oliver Druce said yesterday's bleak weather was only going to get worse as southerly gusts increased today, reaching gale-force speeds of up to 140kmh in exposed places. The low was also expected to bring heavy rain in the coastal hills of Wairarapa, southern and eastern slopes of the Tararua Range, and Wellington.
Forecasters have predicted waves of up to 11 metres in Cook Strait. (abridged)
Christchurch houses evacuated
23/05/2009 stuff.co.nz
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2435755/High-winds-cause-Wellington-chaos
NICK BLACK DEBRIS: Flotsam washed up on Owhiro Bay Parade Wellington creates a hazard for motorists.
Residents have been evacuated from two Sumner, Christchurch, homes after a slip in the area this morning.
The 100cu m slip was part of a raft of weather-related damage nationwide, which included boats breaking from their moorings in Wellington, a Christchurch hotel losing its roof and power poles blocking a road near Upper Hutt.
Christchurch City Council transport and greenspace manager Alan Beuzenberg said the slip was on council reserve land on The Spur and had reduced Main Road below to a single lane.
"The homes which have been evacuated are directly behind the area of hillside which subsidised. These homes are some metres from the slip.
Bluebridge and Interislander ferry sailings were cancelled as high winds and huge swells affected the Cook Strait. About 700 people were stranded on either side of the strait.
Wind gusts of up to 140kmh hit the Wellington region, forcing the closure of Blue Mountains Road near Upper Hutt after several power poles were damaged and blocked the road, police said. Power was briefly cut to about 1200 homes in the greater Wellington region after tree branches and debris across power lines knocked out electricity to homes in Ngauranga, Johnsonville and Plimmerton. (abridged)
A chill wind blows in 'Winterless' North
25.05.2009 by André Hueber Northern Advocate
Old Jack Frost pays a visit to Pohe Island. Picture/John Stone
Wrap up in woollies because we're colder than usual, but you may not need a brollie because we haven't been as wet, Metservice says.
Forecaster Ramon Oosterkamp said it had been much chillier a lot earlier this year and the Winterless North "hasn't quite lived up to its reputation on this occasion". (abridged)
Beer box keeps an eye on the weather
By LAURA RICHARDS - Rangitikei Mail 27/05/2009
LAURA RICHARDS/Rangitikei Mail/ Manawatu Standard
WEATHER MAN: Peter Marcroft.
An upside down beer box painted white shields a simple weather station in Turakina.
"It is a bit of kiwi ingenuity," said long time weather watcher Pete Marcroft, of Edenmore Road.
Mr Marcroft said his interest in weather probably started with a book on clouds that his father had. He was a teenager when the family lived at Manapouri in Fiordland.
He noticed "a big change in weather" from the North Island to the South Island.
Mr Marcroft said the weather station monitors wind speed and direction with an anemometer, humidity, a barometer, temperature and chill-factor and has a self-dumping rain-gauge at the top of the beer crate. That information is then streamed into a web page at www.weatherlive.co.nz. The site also includes links to other weather stations. (abridged)
Gloomy and cold holiday weekend ahead
Wednesday May 27, 2009 By Isaac Davison NZ herald
Parts of Kaikohe were knee-deep in floodwater yesterday. Photo / Supplied by Laurel Jerome
Queen's Birthday weather will keep most holidaymakers indoors, as forecasters predict stormy conditions and single-digit temperatures.
The gloomy outlook comes after torrential rain hit parts of Northland yesterday with more than 100mm falling north of Whangarei, causing some flooding.
Weather Watch analyst Phillip Duncan said: "Over 120mm of rain in one day is a significant amount for farming regions, compared to mountain ranges which just absorb the water. In the Northland area the rain just runs across the fields into the rivers."
While weather will clear tomorrow, the North Island will be met by a cold blast of air this weekend."The air is coming directly from the Antarctic. On Sunday Wellington's high could be only 6 or 7C, while the desert road may only reach 4C," said Mr Duncan. (abridged)
We can see clearly now the city's gone
The Press Paul Gorman 28/05/2009
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch/2450489/We-can-see-clearly-now-the-citys-gone/
ROY SINCLAIR
PEAK PERFORMANCE: The view above the fog was stunning from the Christchurch gondola cableway yesterday morning.
Not all anticyclones bring sunny weather, as Christchurch residents have found out over the past two days.
The city had a classic case of "anticyclonic gloom" yesterday, with fog and mist giving way to low cloud by late morning.
MetService spokesman Bob McDavitt said there were "10 reasons to hate a high", including anticyclonic gloom. The gloomy conditions were due to a lid of warm air only a few hundred metres above sea level keeping cold and moist air trapped near the ground.
Conditions would improve only when the wind picked up or the sun managed to break through, he said. Low cloud or fog patches were likely again this morning.
Never mind the rain, here's the snow
Saturday May 30, 2009
By Wayne Thompson NZ Herald
Snow is expected to close the Desert Rd at times during Queen's Birthday weekend as a polar blast strikes the country and temperatures tumble. Photo / Sarah Ivey
MetService has issued severe weather warnings for 18 places.
It warned of a strong, very cold southerly expected to reach southern parts of the country this afternoon, spread over Canterbury tonight, and quickly spread north tomorrow morning.
It is predicting snow down to 200m as far north as the Gisborne ranges and heavy dumps on Central North Island roads.
MetService severe weather forecaster Oliver Druce said today's warning had been issued not because of the amount of snow expected but because of the very low levels involved.
The snow is likely to close many roads and wind chill is expected to be severe. (abridged)
What a start
Saturday May 30, 2009
http://www.planetski.eu/news/458
Mt Hutt in New Zealand opens 2 weeks early after heavy snowfalls. Blue skies and powder were the order of the day.
Sunny skies and smiles all round were the hallmarks of the opening of the ski season with more than 200 people turning out for the occasion. It was the first time the mountain had opened in May for more than a decade.
“We have a one metre snow base which is phenomenal for this time of year. Getting the mountain open early has been a huge challenge for staff but we had a great day today making it well worth the effort,” said Ski Area Manager Dave Wilson as the lifts sprang into action.
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