A cold snap is today rushing up the country with temperatures falling fast behind it.

At 11:45 Christchurch had a mild 11 degrees with a north easterly while just further south in Timaru the southerly had hit and temperatures have dropped to only 6 degrees.

Weather Analyst Richard Green says the cold snap may see snow and severe wind chills.  “Snow is expected to just 100 metres in parts of Canterbury and while snow falls aren’t likely to be heavy the cold change will come as a shock”.  Mr Green says the wind chill for Christchurch is predicted to be -10 at times.

The cold southerly will hit Wellington this afternoon and into the upper North Island, including Auckland, late afternoon or evening.

The cold snap will be short lived – as expected in Spring – with a warm nor’wester hitting Canterbury tomorrow afternoon.