❄️Weather updates❄️
Snow is falling in the lower South Island early Friday, with MetService warning it could be heavy in the southern Canterbury High Country and inland Otago, and also possibly northern Southland.
What's been happening:
- About 6.45am, Queenstown Lakes District Council said the Crown Range Road was closed by snow.
- Aurora Energy said power was out to about 3500 customers in Central Otago early Friday.
- State Highway 85 was closed between Omakau and Palmerston on Friday morning.
- State Highway 6 was closed by snow between Haast and Makarora on Friday morning. No detour was available and road users were advised to avoid the area.
- Remarkables has received 51cm of fresh snow in the last 48 hours.
- Coronet Peak had 30cm of fresh snow at the base and 80cm at the top of the mountain in the last 24 hours.
- Cardrona ski area is open with 29cm of new snow, and Treble Cone is open with about 48cm of new snow. Chains are required on all vehicles at both fields.
- In Canterbury, Mt Hutt has about 1-2cm of new snow and is expecting more today, while Ohau is expecting 20cm-30cm during the day.
- The road to Milford Sound remains closed on Friday morning after being closed all day on Thursday because of the weather.
- Queenstown Primary School and Dunstan High School are both closed due to weather.
What's in store:
- Snow was possible to 300 metres in Otago and Southland on Friday morning, and to 500m in southern Canterbury, MetService said.
- MetService has issued a heavy snow warning for the Canterbury High Country south of the Rakaia River through to 3pm Friday.
- There's also a heavy snow warning for inland Otago until noon.
- A heavy rain watch is in place for Westland south of Haast through to 7pm.
- Snow is also expected to fall on some other high routes in the South Island.
- "Please drive with caution as there are snow plough trucks operating along the highway from Te Anau to Milford Sound." NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi says avalanche hazard assessments are underway and it is likely that the road will reopen about 11am Friday, after road snow clearing.
- MetService is warning snow could affect Arthur’s Pass, Porters Pass, Lindis Pass and the Crown Range Road at times during Friday.
- Orbus bus depo in Queenstown was snowed in but buses are now underway with delays
❄️You can read more on Stuff, but feel free to share any further updates or photos of snow below!❄️
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️