MetService strong wind watches have been issued for the Canterbury High Country and Marlborough south-east of the Awatere River, while gusts were also forecast for parts of Central Otago. Photo: MetService
Strong winds are buffeting the South Island, bringing down trees, and causing power outages, road warnings and runaway rubbish bins.
MetService strong wind watches have been issued for the Canterbury High Country and Marlborough south-east of the Awatere River, while gusts were also forecast for parts of Central Otago.
Meteorologist Samkelo Magwala said wind speeds of 80-90 km/h had been recorded throughout Canterbury, with gusts topping 100km/h at Mount Hutt's summit.
State Highway 1 was reduced to one lane at Chertsey, near Ashburton, due to fallen trees.
The NZ Transport Agency urged drivers to take extra care, issuing wind warnings for State Highway 8 between Geraldine and Omarama, State Highway 73 from Yaldhurst to Arthur's Pass Village and State Highway 7 from the Hanmer Springs turnoff to Springs Junction, including Lewis Pass.
The agency earlier issued a general caution for Central Otago.
In Alexandra, Earnscleugh and Omakau, Aurora Energy reported unplanned power outages affecting more than 2000 customers, although power was restored to most properties by midday on Thursday.
Cental Otago District Council urged people to secure wheelie bins after the wind cast them onto roads across the district.
"Our collection crews are out in tough conditions, standing bins back up and picking up what they can as they go. The wind is so strong that bins are tipping over again before they can even be emptied, which is causing delays," the council said on social media.
MetService was also warning of potentially heavy rain on Thursday in the headwaters of the Canterbury lakes, rivers south of Arthur's Pass, and the headwaters of the Otago lakes and rivers.
Magwala said that was likely to arrive in the afternoon and the front would also bring heavy falls to Westland.
He said Mainlanders could then expect the arrival of a fresh period of unsettled weather on Thursday night.
"That will result in some cold temperatures, with the cold front propagating that cold air. It will result in some snowfall, especially in the southern region of the South Island," he said.
The NZ Transport Agency said State Highway 94 between Te Anau and Milford Sound would close at 5pm on Thursday because of forecast snow overnight.
The road was expected reopen before 9am on Friday but the snow was likely to continue and drivers should watch for snow clearing equipment.
Eventful end to winter
Meanwhile, the end of the meterological winter months will not bring typical springtime weather for much of the country, MetService is warning.
Strong wind watches are in force today in Wellington, with possible thunderstorms in Taranaki this evening, and strong gusts anticipated on Friday for Hawke's Bay south of Napier, the Tararua district and Wairarapa north of Martinborough.
Severe weather updates⚠️
— MetService (@MetService) August 27, 2025
Strong winds in the far south have eased this morning, and watches for those areas have now lapsed.
⚠️ Watches and warnings remain in place today for parts of the South Island and Wellington.
From tomorrow (6am–8pm), a new strong wind watch comes… pic.twitter.com/7w7LkxW09d
This is expected to continue into the weekend, with strong northwesterlies hitting over the weekend, and swells on the Western coastlines that could reach as high as 6.5 metres.
"As we move into the last weekend of winter, we are expecting to see another boost to winds and swell, combined with fast-moving rainbands, MetService said in a statement.
"The weekend sees a transition into a breezy springtime setup, and we may find more strong wind watches issued."
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