Snowfall in Hawke's Bay associated with snowfall in Southland, Otago and Canterbury

Snowfall lasted four days from the 1st to the 4th of July

Napier-Taupo Road was closed on 04/07/1996 isolating some areas

Snow depth on the Napier-Taupo Road reached 35cm and was the worst snowfall in the hill country area above 300m for 30-40 years

Associated with snowfall in Southland, Otago and Napier-Taupo Road

Snowfall lasted four days from the 1st to the 4th of July

Ashburton recorded snow to a depth of 15cm

Heavy snowfalls up to 30 cm deep in Southland and Otago from the 1st to the 2nd of July followed by low temperatures

Associated snowfall in Southland, Canterbury and Napier-Taupo Road

Snowfall lasted four days from the 1st to the 4th of July

Northern motorway out of Dunedin was closed

Heavy snowfalls up to 30 cm deep in Southland and Otago from the 1st to the 2nd of July was followed by low temperatures

Associated snowfall in Otago, Canterbury and Napier-Taupo Road

Snowfall lasted four days from the 1st to the 4th of July

The combination of a significant snowfall followed by a blocking anticyclone which developed just east of the South Island, then remained stationary caused the snow to be cemented in place by a "big freeze"

The heavy dumping of snow was followed by clear skies and light winds which brought a record frost of -14.2 degC to Southland on 4th. For the first 15 days of the month temperatures were at a record low and this caused a prolonged freeze where snow lay on the ground for a week

Frost was most severe since records began in 1910

A mean temperature of at least 2.6 degrees lower than the average was recorded

The snow and low temperatures created hazardous driving conditions and some Southland roads were closed

Larger plumbing companies reported 500 calls a day to fix burst pipes, broken hot water cylinders, ceiling tanks and toilet bowls

Car owners, who left using anti-freeze too late, faced extensive repairs

Emergency services such as the Fire Service were run ragged

Gardens were ravaged, trees died and the bird population suffered

Gore recorded a minimum air temperature of -13 degrees celcius on the 4th

Snow fell up to a depth of 8 cm in Invercargill.

Invercargill had 10 days of severe frost and snow lay for 11 days and did not commence thawing until after the 10th.

Invercargill recorded a minimum air temperature of -9 degrees celcius on the 4th

Invercargill recorded a minimum air temperature of -9 degrees celcius on the 8th

In Invercargill the ground temperature dropped to -14.2 degrees celcius on the 4th - a new record.

Glenaray Station recorded a minimum temperature of -18 degrees celcius on the night of 6th