Extreme cold, destructive winds lash south-eastern states
The weather bureau has issued warnings for Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia. Photo: BOM
Destructive winds have lashed parts of Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales as a deep polar low moved across the country’s south-east.
In Victoria, the strongest winds began at 3:00am and were expected to intensify until about 9:00am in Melbourne.
State Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp said peak wind gusts could reach up to 130 kilometres per hour in the state’s south-west.
“It is going to get an awful lot colder,” Mr Crisp said.
“We’re not used to getting those gusts very often in Melbourne, so it’s going to have an impact and we need to pay attention to that.”
As a series of cold fronts whip through SE Australia, we're expecting damaging winds 💨 with showers & thunderstorms & snow down to 400–600 m, creating dangerous conditions about alpine areas 🏔️ Check the latest weather warnings at: https://t.co/Q8WIN1B0hJ pic.twitter.com/eFlHpwmxSJ
— Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) August 8, 2019
Wind gusts of over 100kph had already been recorded in some parts of South Australia, raising dust, bringing down trees and leaving thousands of homes without power.
Adelaide is bracing for gusts in excess of 125kph, which could also impact Port Lincoln, Whyalla, Renmark, Mount Gambier and Naracoorte.
The State Emergency Service has warned people to stay indoors and avoid travelling unless absolutely necessary.
The high winds and poor visibility made it difficult for emergency services to reach the scene of a fatal truck collision on the Sturt Highway near South Australia’s Barossa Valley region.
Victoria’s ski resorts, which have been experiencing lacklustre snowfalls so far this season, are expecting the winter storm to bring welcome snow to bolster low base levels.
Mount Baw Baw, Mount Buller, Mount Hotham and Falls Creek may experience gusts of up to 120kph until Friday morning.
Mt Buller in Victoria has welcomed snow falls.
Great Alpine Road has been closed between Harrietville and Mount Hotham due to heavy snow.
Blizzards are also likely for alpine areas in New South Wales including Thredbo.
The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service has recommended back country travel be postponed until conditions improve.
