10 Sep 2015

Dramatic afternoon for Christchurch

5:23 pm on 10 September 2015

Christchurch's weather has been on a roller coaster ride today, with a sudden southerly storm knocking out power to some parts of the city.

A dramatic sky above Christchurch as the temperature plummeted this afternoon.

A dramatic sky above Christchurch as the temperature plummeted this afternoon. Photo: Twitter/@VicMetcalf_NZ

What started out as a mild, spring day - with temperatures peaking at 19degC across the city - gave way to a squally storm this afternoon.

The MetService issued a graph showing how quickly the temperature dropped in the city - from 19degC to about 9degC in less than two hours.

Just before 4pm a dramatic hail storm hit the central Christchurch.

The hail was followed by lightning and thunder, and people could be seen huddling in doorways, waiting for the weather to pass.

Residents took to Twitter and Facebook to post photos of the hail storm and dust clouds over the central business district.

Traffic signals are out at the intersection of QEII Drive and Marshlands Rd and people were being urged to drive safely and use the give way rules.

The Orion website was also reporting power outages in the western suburb of Hei Hei and Hornby and the eastern suburbs of Burwood and Mairehau.

It said about 1000 customers were affected.

The police said there were no reports of damage.