Buildings collapse under heavy snow in New Zealand

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12 Jun 06 - A winter storm has caused chaos across New Zealand ’s North and South Islands .Several buildings collapsed under the weight of the heavy snow in the eastern town of Timaru .Up to 15cm of snow fell in south Canterbury , blocking many roads.
In the capital, Wellington , the winds reached 80mph, ripping roofs from houses and buildings and tearing down power-lines leaving thousands without electricity. Christchurch International airport was closed for several hours, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news ... news.shtml



12 June 06 - Hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders were without
power today as chaotic winter weather whipped up destructive gales and
dumped snow across the country.

The Canterbury region was worst hit with roads, schools and businesses
closed and farmland and towns blanketed in up to a three feet of snow. It
was described in some areas as the heaviest fall in 50 years. Even the
Mt. Hutt ski field was off limits to skiers.

Christchurch airport was shut down in the morning before snow was
cleared from the runway. (Sydney Morning Herald)

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More snow in New Zealand - 16 Jun 06 - Five days after what some
New Zealanders describe as the worst winter storm in 50 years, the New
Zealand MetService is warning of further snowfall this weekend.

The previous storm dumped more than 60 cm (2 feet) of snow in parts
of South Island . The Army and Air Force have been called in to help deliver supplies to farmers in remote areas of South Island that remain snow-bound.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news ... news.shtml

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Record cold in Australia - 18 Jun 06 -

The city of Perth recorded its coldest night on
record Friday night, as temperatures dropped below zero.
The average daily low in June in Perth is 10.1C (50.2F), and the average high is
18.3C (64.9F). Not since records began has the mercury dropped below zero during any month of the year. But it dipped to minus 0.6C (30.9F) Friday night, giving Perth its first official freeze.
A record low was also recorded at Jandakot of minus three degrees.
The cold snap also saw several records broken in towns in the southwest. Collie reported minus 5.8 degrees, its all time lowest minimum. In Bridgetown, the temperature fell to minus five degrees which is also a record low.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/news ... news.shtml


Record cold in Australia - 16 Jun 06 -
Records toppled in many parts of Australia yesterday. NE VIC, Benalla, Rutherglen and Wangaratta all registered their coldest temperatures on record for any month. Rutherglen's -7.5 knocked 0.9 off the previous all-time record. Just over the border in NSW, Corowa's -5.0 was also its coldest temperature in 34 years, while at minus 3.0, Parkes recorded its coldest June reading in half a century.
In SA, Elliston dropped to -0.8, its first sub-zero June temperature in 45 years, while Kingscote's -2.0 set a new all-time low.
Six areas in the SE quarter of WA set new records, including Eyre, Forrest and Carnegie.
http://www.australianweathernews.com/ne ... 0614.SHTML