Polar blast wreaks havoc in south 

Queenstown and large parts of Otago and Southland are cut off from the rest of the country after being hammered by the winter's first big snow storm.

The icy blast has closed major roads and emergency services are stretched attending to numerous accidents.

The severe weather is threatening the Southern Hemisphere's biggest winter festival. The opening of  Queenstown Winter Festival has been cancelled because conditions are too wintry and many of Saturday's events are also postponed. Locals believe it's the first time in 33 years that this has ever happened.

And it came at the end of another snowy day that saw motorists in trouble.

The winter resort woke on Friday to Thursday's snow frozen hard.

The airport runway that had been cleared of snow all night ready for the influx of winter festival guests was too icy for planes to use.

Passengers sat and waited in airports around the country. Schools around Queenstown, Wanaka and Arrowtown were also closed.

By lunchtime more snowfalls had arrived and appeals were made for only cars with chains to use the roads. That meant a desperate scramble for chains from suppliers.

The Kawarau Gorge from Queenstown to Cromwell  and the Crown Range were closed.

Just how treacherous the roads can be was all too clear as the car involved in Thursday's fatal slide into lake Wanaka was retrieved for the police serious crash investigation unit to examine. A 20-year-old Dunedin University student in the car was killed.

Fear of the dangers of worsening weather finally forced festival organisers to call off Friday night's opening off, telling people not to venture out.

"In a way it's kind of achieved one of our objectives. Winter Festival is here to celebrate the opening of winter. Winter is definitely open - we didn't even need to open it someone else did it for us," says David Kennedy of Destination Queenstown.

Blizzards widespread

And it's not just Queenstown feeling the brunt of the polar blast. Blizzard-like conditions are also wreaking havoc in Southland and other parts of the Otago region.

State Highway 94 from Te Anau to Milford was closed on Friday. State Highway six from Haast to Makarora and between Cromwell and Arrowtown Junction was also closed as well as the Lindis Pass.

Blanketed in white, Naseby is at its prettiest. But with snow so heavy, the novelty soon wears thin for residents.

Maniototo motorists were also quickly reminded where there's snow there's no grip on local roads. Eight degree frosts on Friday morning added to the chaos.

"I've lived here all my life, and this is the most mayhem I've seen on the road here in one day," says farmer Graeme Duncan.

There were traffic tribulations on Thursday night on Burkes Pass between Timaru and Tekapo and they continued on Friday morning. The local policeman had his work cut out for him helping motorists who ignored driving advice.

"What part of 'chains essential' do they not understand?" says Senior Constable Greg Sutherland of Tekapo police

Luckily for some tourists, the army was on hand with a truck-load of soldiers.

Further north near Christchurch there was a lucky escape for two people who were trapped in their car for a cold seven-and-a-half hours after it slipped from a wet road and rolled 100 metres straight down the Port Hills.

"They've hit rocks on the way down which has deflected them off on different angles and I think that both of them are extremely lucky," says constable Graham Flyn of Christchurch Police.

Meanwhile Civil Defence is urging farmers in the lower half of the South Island, Northland, Waikato and the Coromandel, where there are weather warnings in place, to get out their generators and start charging their telecommunication batteries now.

Timaru Civil Defence Manager, Mark Bang, says many lessons have been learned from last year's big dump of snow in South Canterbury, and is reminding those living in isolated communities to get ready. He says expect the unexpected, and not to take water and electricity for granted.

MetService says it will be cold everywhere on Saturday with biting southwesterlies and snow to sea level in the south.

For the latest on road conditions check out AA Roadwatch and Transit New Zealand

For up to date weather information for your region head to the tvnz.co.nz weather page.

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