New Zealand sees Queen's birthday holiday on coldest day of year

WELLINGTON - New Zealand's Queen's birthday holiday saw a sharp drop in the temperature on Monday, making it the coldest day of the year in most parts of New Zealand, said local meteorological institute MetService.

Clear skies overnight in most parts of the country has contributed to the coldest morning of the year so far, with parts of the country dropping below zero.

It was understood that places in the South Island, such as Mt Cook and Tekapo, reached minus seven degrees centigrade early on Monday morning. Blenheim and Alexander reached minus four degree centigrade, Taupo and Timaru reached minus three degrees centigrade and Queenstown reached minus two degree centigrade. At its coldest, Wellington reached five degrees centigrade.

MetService meteorologist Kyle Lee said winter had definitely arrived and the combination of bad weather the country experienced on Friday and Saturday had left a bitter coldness.

Last week brought unstable westerly winds, heavy rain and thunderstorms with hail that affected most parts of the country.

A significant weather feature is expected to bring severe weather on Wednesday, Lee said.

"The nature of the system could mean more heavy rain and some more snow for parts of New Zealand," said Lee.