Cold snap brings snow to parts of southeast Australia by Laura Gilchrist
For the first time in over 30 years, a town in Tasmania has seen snow falling. It comes as many parts of southeast Australia experience a springtime cold snap, at the end of a month which has been the hottest October on record for the capital city Canberra.
Residents in Bicheno, on Tasmania’s east coast, got up early to see the snow falling on Saturday, after reportedly not seeing a flake since 1972. With a chilly southwesterly wind, temperatures dipped to 2°C (36°F) overnight, compared to an average of 8-10°C (46-50°F) at this time of year.
Elsewhere in Australia, snow reportedly fell in the states of New South Wales and Victoria. In the Australian Capital Territory, which sits within New South Wales, Canberra was also expecting a flurry of snow on Sunday. Temperatures in the capital were falling back to something more seasonal, after several weeks of above-average temperatures. It has been the hottest October on record for the city, with temperatures around 25°C (77°F) for much of the month. 19°C (66°F) is the average daily maximum for Canberra in October. The minimum temperature recorded in Canberra on Saturday night was a chilly -1°C (30°F), and a frost is also forecast for the city on Sunday night.
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