Snow falling on Tuesday in Mid Canterbury was the latest occurrence in several days of wild weather.
Photos of snow came in to The Ashburton Courier Facebook page, as residents throughout Mid Canterbury braved the outdoors or snapped shots through their windows.
In Ashburton, it was the first snowfall for the year, according to the MetService.
Snow fell in the town centre from 8.30am for more than half an hour, giving a wintry feel in the midst of what has been a warm and windy spring.
Receiving snow in October, however, is not rare.
Meteorologist Dom Barry said the Canterbury Plains also received snow in October in 2022.
Making the most of it on Tuesday were Ashburton brothers Gabriel and Caden Yanga, aged 11 and 9.
They enjoyed the novelty of catching the white flakes as they waited with their parents on East St for a bus to Timaru.
‘‘It’s fun to play in, and cold,’’ Gabriel said.
Walking on East St with an umbrella was Eimeren Guevarra, who has lived in Ashburton for six years.
She said she had seen snow fall at her home the previous night as well.
It was the first time she had ever seen snow consistently fall for more than five minutes in the town.
The snowfall came after a red wind warning, strong winds, lightning, flooded rivers, and a local state of emergency being declared in Canterbury.
The forecast conditions forced Mid Canterbury teachers and medical personnel taking part in a nationwide mega strike on Thursday to cancel their protest action.
Late on Thursday night, the district council issued a voluntary evacuation advisory for the South Rakaia Huts as the Rakaia River threatened to burst its banks at the river mouth. However, the river did not breach.
District council chief executive Hamish Riach said in a statement the South Rakaia Huts community had been working with the district council over the past couple of years on an emergency plan.
‘‘And it was good to see residents taking steps to activate that. They knew how to keep themselves safe,” Riach said.
Trees were also damaged, one in the Ashburton Domain on Walnut Ave split down its trunk so was removed.
A suspected lighting strike shut the Methven drinking water treatment plant on Thursday.
Riach thanked Methven residents for using water conservatively until the plant could resume normal operations overnight.
