Holidaymakers in Otago are being told to expect ''spring-like'' conditions to continue after wind gusts and rain battered parts of the region overnight.
The MetService was yesterday warning of potential damage to insecure structures, and of hazardous driving conditions.
Emergency services were called to a non-injury crash about 6pm, after a car was blown off State Highway 6 between Cromwell and Luggate.
The crash caused police to issue a warning for drivers in Central Otago to take care in the high winds.
Northwest gusts were expected to reach up to 120kmh in parts of Southland, Otago and Canterbury, particularly in inland areas.
Between 150mm and 200mm of rain was also expected in the Otago headwaters near the Main Divide, bringing the possibility of surface flooding, slips and rapidly rising water levels in lakes and rivers.
MetService forecaster Leigh Matheson said the front was expected to cross Otago within about six hours overnight.
Eastern parts of Otago were expected to miss the worst of the front. Central Otago was expected to bear the brunt of the wind but places in Canterbury and the lower North Island were expected to be hit even harder.
The weather in the region was expected to improve today, but more changeable ''spring-like'' weather was likely in the immediate future.
''We are in a very spring-like pattern at the moment and it's not really the end of it.
"There is going to be another front on late Saturday to Sunday ... and then another one as we get into Tuesday,'' she said.
The wind may have been picking up and the sky darkening in Central Otago yesterday but that did not bother regular Omakau camper Shaun Hosking, of Dunedin.
He had heard about the weather forecast but saw it as a good opportunity to teach his daughter and nieces to fly a kite.
He was camping in a party of six adults and six children aged 13 and under and said they were no strangers to bad summertime weather.
''It's usually pretty windy. It's not the best time of year to come [camping] but I've come to expect it.''
He had arrived in Omakau on December 28 and was greeted by wind, hail, rain and near floods. Since then the weather had been ''up and down, sorta drizzling but nothing too bad''.
Waitaki district emergency services manager Chris Raine warned that the conditions could result in high river levels and an increased risk of fire.
''This, potentially, is a significant event. The forecasted rain will end up in the upper hydro lakes later this week.
''Lake Pukaki is full, thus extra water will be spilt down the Pukaki River into the lower lakes.''
Mr Raine said wind and temperatures were forecast to rise on the eastern side of the Main Divide.
''With low humidity, the fire danger will increase inland too during the period of high winds.
''Driving may be hazardous for motorists and power lines may fail and cause spot fires.''
Campers at the Waitaki Lakes also needed to be aware that water levels may rise gradually to wet previously dry campsites, he said.
Environment Canterbury duty flood controller Chris Fauth said most rain was expected overnight, but at this stage it was just a case of ''wait-and-see'' as to what the effects would be on the Waitaki River and the Waitaki Lakes.
Mr Fauth said most Waitaki lakes, apart from Lake Tekapo, were already ''quite full''.
''Meridian are already spilling a small amount of water from Pukaki into the Pukaki River, but in terms of what will happen after this event, it's just a bit of a wait-and-see how much rain falls.''
Queenstown Lakes harbourmaster Marty Black said yesterday there was ''a bit of wind picking up'' but no problems were expected.
''We certainly won't get any flooding,'' Mr Black said.
He said a downpour a couple of nights ago had not resulted in flooding.
At 2pm yesterday Lake Wakatipu was at 309.982m.
The alert for a ''high'' level is listed as 310.800m on the Otago Regional Council's website.
