Wind wakes Wellingtonians, and ferries remain cancelled due to high seas – Stuff.co.nz

Last updated17:22, June 14 2017

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Ferry crossings for both Interislander ferries (pictured) and Bluebridge have been cancelled until Thursday.

Sailings across Cook Strait will resume on Thursday morning after wild weather forced theInterislander ferry to cancel its services.

Southwesterly winds were forecasted to bring six-metre-high "roller coaster" waves onWednesday, alsosuspending Wellington's Bluebridge services for the day.

The first sailing leaving Wellington on Thursday is a freight serviceat 6.45am, and the first passenger service out of the capital is at 9am. The first ferry to leavePicton will be at 10:45am.

"Customers whose travel or freight was delayed have been accommodated on sailings throughout the day and we thank them for their patience," Interislander General Manager Mark Thompson said.

READ MORE: *Snow to 300m in the south, southwest gales in many areas *Interislander ferries halted due to 'wild' Cook Strait swells

Wellingtonians had their sleep interrupted early Wednesday morning when winds picked up for a few hours,gusting up to 100 kilometres an hour in some places.

MetService meteorologist Tom Adams explained that at about 1.30am the wind turned southerly, bringing with it strong winds that gusted at around 90kmh between 2 and 3am.

The largest gust was recorded at the summit of the Rimutaka Hill road, at 109kmh. Winds atop Mt Kaukau reached 100kmh.

"There will be some more wind around today [in Wellington], but nothing like we had overnight. The southwesterlies are going to gradually ease throughout the day," Adams said.

The overnight wind and cancelled ferries come as snow was forecast to fall to 300 metres in Otago, Southland and Fiordland. Meanwhile southwesterlies could become gale strength in parts of Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and Hawke's Bay, about Banks Peninsula, and in exposed areas of Otago, Southland and Fiordland.

-Stuff

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Wind wakes Wellingtonians, and ferries remain cancelled due to high seas - Stuff.co.nz