Queenstown snow easing to showers: MetService

Slippery, snowy road conditions caused mayhem at Stanley St, as the hill leading down to town...
Slippery, snowy road conditions caused mayhem at Stanley St, as the hill leading down to town proved difficult, resulting in cars parked at the road side, and forcing many motorists to stop and put chains on. Photo by Henrietta Kjaer.
The snow which hampered traffic and closed schools in the Queenstown area today is easing to showers, and most road snow warnings are expected to be lifted in the next few hours, the MetService says.

About 5cm of snow fell around the Queenstown area today, MetService forecaster Gerard Barrow said.

"Basically, they have had as much snow as they are going to get. The snow will now be falling as showers."

Concerns for children travelling to school prompted Queenstown Primary School and Wakatipu High School to close for the day, and police urged people not to use the roads unless necessary.

Snow and ice through the Lindis Pass kept State Highway 6 between Omarama and Tarras closed this morning. 

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A small group of truck drivers kept a patience vigil during a chilly morning at Tarras as they waited for the road to reopen, after a southerly front brought snow and freezing temperatures overnight on Tuesday.

Snow chaos: latest road closures

Star Moving driver Lenze Pander told the Otago Daily Times he had been forced to turn his truck back about 10km north of Morven Hills Station when snow on the road began to turn into thick ice, at about 7am.

"There was a terrible freeze going on up there. I reckon there was about 10cm of frozen snow and ice,'' he said.

By the time he had turned back, falling snow had covered all of the truck tyre marks his vehicle had made during the drive up to near the Lindis Pass, he said.

Full coverage in tomorrow's ODT.
Full coverage in tomorrow's ODT.
Police said there had been several crashes in the Queenstown area.

 

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