Cold front to bring below-freezing temperatures to south-east Australia
|
Version 0 of 1. People as far north as Glen Innes on the New South Wales north coast are being warned to prepare for possible snowfall, as a cold front brings below-freezing temperatures to most of south-east Australia. Mick Logan, a meteorologist with the NSW Bureau of Meteorology, said it could be the most impressive widespread snowfall since 2000, with five to 10cm of snow expected down to altitudes of 700 metres in the southern and central ranges, and snow down to 900 metres expected in the northern tablelands. Snow will begin falling in Tasmania and Victoria on Saturday and will move to the Snowy Mountains, before extending further along the Great Dividing Range. Flakes are expected to fall in Jenolan Caves in the Blue Mountains and in the central regional cities of Orange and Lithgow overnight and on Saturday and Sunday morning. The snow is expected to reach as far north as Armidale and Glen Innes, about 500km north of Sydney. The predicted snowfall is an eagerly anticipated boost to the snow season, with falls of up to 40cm expected at Thredbo and Falls Creek by the end of the weekend. However it also coincides with the last weekend in the school holidays, and Logan warned it could wreak havoc on unprepared drivers. “Given that the snow levels are likely to get down to 700 metres on the ranges, including the Blue Ranges [Mountains] near Sydney, there could be widespread impact on the roads,” he said. “Any sort of snow can quickly make the roads really quickly impassable.” NSW police and the state emergency service (SES) have issued warnings urging drivers to take care on icy roads. Stuart Smith, acting assistant commander for NSW police traffic and highway patrol, said the mix of heavy end-of-holiday traffic and frigid weather conditions could be deadly. The NSW SES commissioner, Adam Dent, urged people to avoid unnecessary travel and consider putting together a snow survival kit, just in case. “Snow can bring down trees and branches, blocking roads and damaging property, so take the opportunity ahead of forecast snow to trim overhanging trees and branches and if isolation is likely, stock up on food, fuel, medicine and other essential items,” Dent said. The extended cold snap also prompted South Australia’s chief medical officer, Prof Paddy Phillips, to issue a hypothermia warning, saying it could be “a very real and significant health problem for older members of our community.” Chilly weather is expected to continue into Monday, meaning drifts could still be around when students return to school next week. “Snow won’t be down to such low levels on Monday, but the cold weather will hang around,” Logan said. “It [the snow] could hang around for a few days.” Areas near Armidale and the northern tablelands are expected to experience their coldest day in more than 15 years on Sunday. Tony Leggett, a senior meteorologist with the Bureau of Meteorology, said while it was not unusual weather for Tasmania and Victoria, which are also predicting snow down to about 700 metres, it was unusual to see a cold front push so far north. While Sydney, won’t see snow, it is not forecast to escape the miserable weather. Leggett said Sydneysiders, who are still recovering from an influx of social media posts about particularly chilly conditions on Thursday morning, can expect “quite unpleasant” conditions on Sunday afternoon and Monday, with winds of 40-50km/h and a maximum temperature of about 14C. |