Gale-force winds are expected to hit parts of south-east Australia as an unusual cold snap that descended on Saturday brings snow and closes roads.
The Bureau of Meteorology has stated a deep, low-pressure system forming in the Tasman Sea, east of Victoria’s Gabo Island, will move slowly east on Monday and Tuesday with “damaging winds” and gusts reaching 100km/h predicted for coastal regions of New South Wales and Victoria.
The State Emergency Service have advised people should move vehicles under cover or away from trees, secure loose items around their house, yard and balcony and keep clear of fallen power lines.
Melbourne-based Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Phil King said Victoria’s southern and mountain districts will see strong southerly winds and rain.
“Most of it will be in Gippsland in the next 24 hours, with falls ranging from 20mm in the west grading up to 100mm in the east,” he said.
Flash-flooding is forecast for parts of East Gippsland and a flood watch in place in other parts of the state including greater Melbourne, where 20-40mm is forecast for the city’s east.
Rain today has led to stream rises across eastern #Melbourne. Flood watch is in place http://t.co/HLs2UYFQyQ pic.twitter.com/gpIQHC2fh0
— BOM Victoria (@BOM_Vic) July 12, 2015
Sunday in Melbourne was the wettest July day in Victoria since 1990, with 27.4mm of rain in the city by 9.30pm.
After a weekend of healthy falls, King said 5-10cm of snow is expected across alpine regions every day this week.
Weatherzone said by the time the weather clears on Sunday, ski resorts should have collected 50-70cm of fresh snow, making up for the slow start to the season.
In NSW, 5-10cm also fell in Orange in the central west, and at least a dusting of snow along the Great Dividing Range from the Snowy Mountains in the south to Tenterfield on the NSW-Queensland border.
Residents in Armidale and Glen Innes in the state’s north-west can expect more snowfall on Monday morning, the Bureau of Meteorology said.
The bureau’s NSW forecaster Helen Kirkup said temperatures were below average throughout large areas of the state’s inland. “The snow along the ranges has been significant,” she said.
Temperatures on the Central Tablelands stayed below 2C on Sunday.
The bad weather forced a number of roads to be closed in NSW. The New England Highway was closed between Glen Innes and Bendemeer and motorists were being advised to delay their journeys.
Sydneysiders have been spared from the arctic temperatures and while Monday will be wet and windy, the temperature should reach 18C, but wind-chill will make the day feel colder.
Sheep graziers in NSW and Queensland have been warned there is a high risk of lamb and sheep losses when exposed to such conditions.
In Queensland the coldest place early on Monday was the central town of Thangool, near Biloela, where the mercury was sitting on -1.3C at about 6.30am. Brisbane reached a low of 8.4C, while the Brisbane airport gauge dipped to 7.4C, with the south-east and some other parts of the state braced for a chilly day.
The cold, dry air from the south is expected to bring frost to inland areas from the south of the state, up to the Atherton Tablelands again overnight into Tuesday.
The Bureau of Meteorology advised people to keep scarves and umbrellas handy as another cold front is set to move through the state on Thursday.
