‘Feels like -21’: Wild winds bring chill across Australia

Source: BOM
“Fierce winds” are moving across much of the country, as two intense cold fronts bring another winter battering to millions.
Wind gusts topped 100km/h in Western Australia and South Australia on Thursday and early on Friday as the weather bureau issued warnings for NSW, Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania.
Forecaster Weatherzone said damaging winds would develop from Friday night in NSW, Victoria and the ACT, before easing later on Saturday.
“This warning area could extend to other parts of the NSW ranges and slopes on Saturday, with very strong winds forecast to impact Sydney, the Illawarra and Newcastle,” it said.
Damaging winds with gusts up to 100km/h are forecast for parts of Victoria later on Friday until Saturday afternoon, including the Grampians and the north-east alpine region.

The area where severe winds are forecast in NSW. Image: BOM
Blizzards are also forecast in the NSW and Victorian alpine areas. Weatherzone said Thredbo Top Station dropped to -6.2 degreees at 7.30am on Friday, with winds gusting up to 72 km/h.
“The wind and the air temperature combined to make an apparent or ‘feels like’ temp of -20.9 degrees,” it said.
The wild weather is likely to bring welcome snow to ski resorts in the eastern states – but also dangerous conditions.
“There’s no avoiding the fact that conditions will be highly unpleasant for skiing or snowboarding at the resorts in the next 48 hours or so, with many lifts expected to be closed or on wind-hold,” Weatherzone said.
“It will also be extremely dangerous in the back country, with travel beyond the resort boundaries strongly discouraged.”
This weekend’s battering follows days of record chill earlier in the week that brought snow to Queensland’s Granite Belt and elevated areas of NSW.
In Victoria there were about 400 requests for help from the State Emergency Service. Most were for fallen trees, building damage and floods in the area east of Melbourne.
In Tasmania, a family of three – including a nine-year-old boy – was flown to safety after 36 hours stranded in the Walls of Jerusalem National Park.
Inspector Michael Johnston of Tasmania Police said the family activated their personal locator beacon to call for help about 4.30pm on Sunday. They were eventually rescued on Tuesday morning.
“I don’t think they were lost. I think the weather closed in on them more than that, which prevented them continuing,” Johnston told ABC radio.
“The adults were OK. The child was clearly suffering the effects of hypothermia. It was a close call and this could have ended tragically.”
They were taken to Launceston Hospital for treatment.