‘Blizzard conditions': Millions brace for icy chill as cold front settles for King's Birthday weekend
More cold weather is on the way as the majority of the country bundles up for an icy long weekend of thunderstorms, widespread rain, hail and snow.
As a cold front crawls across the country – and another one is on the way – millions are waking to icier than normal conditions.
Queensland residents experienced a cool start to the day. It was 11C in Brisbane on Friday morning and even cooler in suburbs including Gatton and Ipswich.
It was a similar story in Sydney, where residents woke up to a chilly 7C in the city and 1C in the western suburbs.Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Jonathan How said the cold front would stick around for the long weekend, stretching across Victoria, Tasmania, and southern NSW.
'It will be very windy as well,' he said.
In addition to the wind and wintry temperatures, a band of rain is forecast to soak the southeast coast on Friday and over the weekend, with South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania in the firing line.
A severe weather warning has been issued for the central and eastern parts of Victoria as damaging winds develop, reaching speeds of up to 90km/h on Friday morning and increasing to a maximum of 100km/h on Saturday.
The warning covers parts of Central, East Gippsland, North Central, North East, West and South Gippsland and South West forecast districts.
Mr How warned that the long weekend would be filled with icy temperatures, sheets of rain and blistering winds across the southeast region of the country.
'We are looking at sort of three to five days of very cold, wet and windy conditions right across southeast Australia,' he said.
First in the firing line will be South Australia, where heavy showers, thunderstorms and hail along the coast are forecast before those conditions head into Victoria.
'On Sunday, we do see cold air continuing to push through the region, the snow level will fall even further and we will see further showers right across the area, even pushing into eastern parts of NSW but mostly on and west of the divide,' he said.
'And for many people, Sunday will be the coldest day.'
Mr How warned of 'blizzard conditions' in the alpine peaks on Saturday, with heavy snowfall.
Canberra and Melbourne residents will be hit the hardest by the frosty temperatures, with tops of 10C and 12C on Sunday, respectively.
Hobart will be slightly warmer on Sunday with a top of 14C and Adelaide will be slightly cooler at 13C.
Showers are set to ease from the west on the King's Birthday, but a low pressure system sitting in the eastern region of Victoria will summon strong winds and showers to the coast.
The long weekend also marks the beginning of the ski season, and those keen to carve up the mountain ranges will likely see approximately 1100mm to 1200mm of snow falling in NSW and Victoria.
Mr How said the coldest conditions during the long weekend would be on Sunday, as a second cold front passes over the southern region of the country, bringing further snow, rain, strong winds and hail.
'These weather systems will bring the most significant snow that we have seen across the southeast of the country so far this year, which is good news for the ski resorts, as the Australian ski season officially starts off this long weekend,' he said.
The highest snowfall is expected over the next three-to-five days, with Mr How anticipating falls to occur across the alpine areas and the Grampians.
As the icy front moved forwards, snow may fall at the Blue Mountains and Oberon by Sunday, with flurries expected in central northern NSW and the Barrington Tops.
By Monday, snow is likely to fall across the Northern Tablelands, possibly touching Guyra and Glen Innes.
Ahead of the ski season, Mr How warned that the cold weather could bring dangerous travelling conditions.
'With that cold weather, there is the risk of also black ice across parts of NSW and Victoria, so we are reminding people to take care if you are heading up to the slopes this weekend for the snow,' he said.
Residents in Brisbane can expect a sunny day with light winds and a top of 23C.
Sydney will be far cooler on Friday, with partly cloudy skies and a top of 18C.
It will be icy in Canberra, with frost in the morning and light winds, reaching a maximum of 13C.
There is a high chance of showers for Melbourne on Friday, with cloudy skies and strong winds and a top of 14C.
Hobart residents will see cloudy skies and a medium chance of afternoon and evening showers, with a top of 14C.
Adelaide residents can expect a high chance of showers and cloudy skies, with a maximum temperature of 17C.
It will be a mostly sunny day in Perth, with light winds and a top of 19C.
Darwin will also be mostly sunny, with light winds and a top of 31C.
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