Heavy snow closed roads and highways in the South Island on Monday while strong winds buffeted Hawke's Bay in the north, leaving hundreds without electricity and fire crews battling vegetation fires.State Highway 1 between Dunedin and Waitati (north of Dunedin) was closed due to snow on Tuesday morning but it had reopened by mid-afternoon with travellers still urged to take extra care on the route.Earlier in the day roading crews were out helping people who were stuck in cars on SH1.Driver Amy Turoa said she was heading south on State Highway 1 when traffic came to a standstill for about 30 minutes."It's probably the heaviest snow I've been in, it just came down so fast," she said.Turoa said when things started slowly moving again she could see dozens of cars stuck in the opposite direction and a truck and trailer that had slid into a ditch."The snow plow came through maybe three times and now we're just following all the other trucks. We've probably passed maybe 40 cars waiting," she said.Snow at Flagstaff, Dunedin.Tess Brunton / RNZAlthough SH1 has now reopened, SH87 from Outram to Middlemarch, in Otago, is set to remain closed overnight because of snow.SH94 Te Anau to Milford Sound was expected to remain open overnight, but with snow forecast to continue throughout the day, disruptions and temporary closures were possible while snow clearing machinery is working.The snow wasn't bad news for everyone though, one Dunedin dogwalker said his dogs loved a snow day.In the South Island, MetService has issued road snowfall warnings for Lewis, Arthur's, Porters and Lindis Pass, as well as Crown Range Road, Milford Road and Dunedin to Waitati Highway and they are set to expire between 6pm and 11pm on Monday.There is also a snowfall warning for the Desert Road in the North Island from 11pm on Monday until 6am on Tuesday and it says around 1cm could accumulate above 800 metres.MetService forecasts that snow could lower to near sea level in Dunedin and Clutha on Monday night."Keep an eye on the snow level in your local forecast if you're planning to drive, especially in Dunedin and Clutha Monday evening, and keep up with any updates on road conditions from NZTA Waka Kotahi and local council or emergency management," MetService meteorologist Ethan Walton-Jones advised.Snow in Dunedin's Halfway Bush.Vyshak Mohan / SUPPLIEDStrong winds cut power, fan fires in Hawke's BayMeteorologists said strong winds around Hawke's Bay were forecast to last until Monday evening.An orange strong wind watch for for Hawke's Bay south of Hastings and the Tararua district is in place until 7pm.Severe gale westerlies gusting 120km/h were expected in exposed places.Firefighters tackle vegetation fires in Hawke's Bay.Hawke's Bay - Fire and EmergencyEarlier on Monday hundreds of homes in Hawke's Bay were without power due to the weather, but that had reduced to less than 100 Unison customers by Monday afternoon.At one stage fire crews were struggling with four vegetation fires in the region that were being fanned by the high winds.Twenty-two trucks were working across two of the fires earlier on Monday and then called in extra personnel and appliances to deal with another two fires.By Monday afternoon, the service said two fires on Swamp Road in Ongaonga had been extinguished after tree stumps and slash caught fire.Fires at Argyll Road and White Road have been extinguished except for one on Argyll Road that's still being monitored.Fire crews have handed a fire at Maharakeke Road back to the landowner for monitoring.See how the day unfolded.