Wind and snow cause havoc for Hawke's Bay: Roads closed, homes without power and strong wind warnings in place
Bad weather has played havoc on State Highway 5 between Napier and Taupō with it being shut earlier today and recently reopened with a warning for cautious driving.
Elsewhere around the region, strong wind warnings are in place, and contractors are working to restore power to affected homes, as a winter blast hits Hawke's Bay.
At 11am, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency confirmed SH5 had reopened but weather conditions "remain challenging" so motorists are still being advised to take care. The road was closed at 7am due to snow on the road.
MetService has issued a heavy snow warning for the region saying snow is possible down to 200 metres, with heavy falls above about 500 metres and a road snowfall warning for SH5.
Earlier this morning, National Journey Manager Helen Harris said contractors were assisting about a dozen trucks that had become stuck on the road after losing traction in the snow. A snow plough had been called in to clear the way for the trucks to be moved through safely.
"Waka Kotahi is monitoring the situation closely and will provide an update when the road status changes," she said at the time.
"Safety of motorists is our top priority. We’re advising everyone in the central and lower North Island to please take extra care on the roads today. Please check the forecast and the Waka Kotahi Facebook, Twitter and Journey Planner webpages before heading out.
“There are challenging weather conditions in many parts of the region today, so make sure to keep speeds down, maintain a safe following distance and stay alert,” Ms Harris said.
Unison Relationships Manager Danny Gough says 149 customers are currently without power around the region, including 73 homes in the Tikokino Rd and State Highway 50 area, 29 homes in Southland Rd, Hastings and 45 homes in Kahuranaki Rd.
At 8.15am, four separate outages had caused about 260 homes to be without power in mainly rural and exposed areas.
Fault crews are on-site at all outages and power will be restored progressively throughout the day, he said just after 11am this morning.
"The current weather will continue to provide challenges so we advise customers to please be prepared for further unplanned power outages and check Unison's website for all up to date outage information."
Wairoa District Council has advised there is heavy snow on the road near Lake Waikaremoana and some people were unable to get past Hōpuruahine so travel should be delayed. While, Central Hawke's Bay District Council has advised that they have received reports of trees down around the district which teams are working to clear.
MetService has also issued a strong wind warning in place for Hawke's Bay, south of Napier and coastal areas further north including the Wairoa District.
The warning, which has been in place since 9am this morning, is expected to lift at 2pm. During this time, South to southwest gales are forecast to be severe at times, with gusts reaching 120 km/h in exposed places.
Strong wind gusts could damage trees, powerlines and unsecured structures and driving may be hazardous, especially for high-sided vehicles and motorcycles, the warning said.
MetService Meteorologist Stephen Glassey says the weather is part of a significant low-pressure system that has brought southerly gales, rain and snow to parts of the country. However, it will move away from the country tomorrow.
"The low dragged up cold air all the way from Antarctica. Snow has been falling in parts of both the North and South Islands, affecting many roads."
Cold southwesterlies ease on Tuesday and snow showers clear the country, leaving only a few rain showers affecting some southern and western parts of New Zealand.
The next significant weather system is a front that arrives in the South Island on Thursday, then moves across the North Island on Friday. The front, preceded by strong northwesterlies, will bring a period of rain as it moves north, with heavy falls in the west of the South Island.
"This next weather system will be completely different to the one affecting New Zealand today. Instead of air coming from Antarctica, most of the air will be coming from Australia, so it will be comparatively warmer, and snow is not expected to be a factor like it is with the current weather system," Glassey said.
