An orange strong wind warning is in force for Southland, with gales causing trees to topple and lifting roofs.
MetService said the far south was bearing the brunt of the showers and wind, with gusts of 115km/h recorded at Invercargill today.
Power has been restored toabout 10 towns but a further 10 are still suffering outages.
Trees were down across the region, two flights out of Invercargill this afternoon were cancelled and extra care was needed on State Highway 87 between Mosgiel and Kyeburn and State Highway One from Waitaki Bridge to Clinton.
In the North Island, snow is also affecting the Napier-Taupo Road, the Desert Road and the Remutaka Hill Road.
A strong wind warning has been issued for coastal Clutha, Southland and Stewart Island, with Metservice saying winds could gust up to 120km/h.
A strong wind watch also covers the Canterbury High Country, and remaining parts of Otago (except North Otago) and Southland.
On Monday, heavy rain and strong to gale northeasterlies are forecast to move onto the upper North Island .
A heavy rain watch will be in place for Northland, still reeling from last month's storm in the Far North.
Snow showers are possible on Arthur's Pass over the 12 hours from 3am this morning, and snow is expected to accumulate on parts of the Milford Road overnight.
