Cold weather grips southern Australia by Rob McElwee
A cold snap has affected parts of southern Australia with temperatures plummeting close to zero and snow falling in places. Strong and bitterly cold gale force winds have also swept across Victoria and New South Wales, with snowfalls across Glen Innes in the north of NSW.
Average temperatures across the state of Victoria at this time of year are usually between 6 and 13C (43 to 55F) but recently temperatures have dropped to nearer 2C (36F) in many places, with snowfall across the Australian Alps. The Bureau of Meteorology warned motorists travelling to Barrington Tops to take care in the adverse weather conditions.
A complex low pressure system off Tasmania pulled up much colder air from the south and interacted with a strong high pressure system over Australia. Winds around the low became strong and gusty and sent a series of cold fronts up across southern Australia bringing bands of rain, with snow and blizzard conditions across the mountains.
Farmers were rejoicing as much needed rain fell earlier this week. Vast parts of Australia have been suffering from one of the worst droughts in living memory. The joy, however, may be short-lived as the low pressure system responsible for the recent rain and snow slips away, only to be replaced by high pressure. This high is expected to bring fine, dry and settled conditions to most parts with temperatures climbing back to, or a little above normal for the time of the year.
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