UPDATE: Milford Road will be closed from East Gate (Hollyford) to West Gate (Chasm) at 4.30pm today due to a heavy overnight snow forecast.

The road (SH94) is not expected to reopen tomorrow, with significant snow expected throughout Tuesday.

Heavy snow is forecast to fall across Southland tonight and tomorrow. 

MetService has issued a Heavy Snow Warning for Fiordland from midnight until 3pm tomorrow. A Heavy Rain Watch is in place for the area today until 7pm.

There's also a Heavy Snow Watch for inland Southland, Clutha and Central Otago south of Roxburgh, from 2am to 6pm tomorrow.

And there's a Strong Wind Watch for Southland coastal areas, including Stewart Island, and coastal Clutha and Dunedin, from midnight until 9pm tomorrow.

The Fiordland forecast is for heavy snow.

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"Expect 15 to 20cm to accumulate above 300m, with lesser amounts down to 200m," the forecast reads.

"Heavy snow may disrupt travel in affected areas and could damage trees and powerlines. Cold conditions may cause stress for livestock."

A Road Snowfall Warning is in place for Milford Road (SH94) from late Monday to Tuesday afternoon. Between 20 to 30 cm of snow may settle near the Homer Tunnel, with lesser amounts to 300 metres.

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For inland Southland and Otago, there will be heavy snow at times on Tuesday and may approach warning criteria above 300 metres.

And for coastal areas, southwesterly winds may approach severe gale in exposed places at times.

There are also Road Snowfall Warnings for the Crown Range, Haast Pass and the Lindis Pass.

Updates are available on the MetService website.