Cold blast sweeps across the country with rain and strong winds forecast for South Australia and Victoria

Cold blasts are sweeping across the country with rain and strong winds forecast for South Australia and Victoria

  • Cold blast to freeze southern states
  • Rain and strong winds predicted for the region

Rain and strong winds are expected in the southern states this week, and snow may also fall over the Australian Alps after a frigid weekend.

The prominent Alpine towns of Mount Buller and Mount Hotham are expected to drop to minus three degrees on Monday, while Perisher Valley is expected to drop to minus four on Monday and Tuesday.

Adelaide and Melbourne are also unlikely to get a reprieve from their hair-raising weekends.

Parts of western Sydney experienced heavy fog on Sunday morning, leading to a warning for motorists to drive slowly as visibility dipped below 200 meters (stock image)

Rain and strong winds are expected in the southern states this week, with a chance of snowfall over the Australian Alps after a frigid weekend

Rain and strong winds are expected in the southern states this week, with a chance of snowfall over the Australian Alps after a frigid weekend

After a severe frost warning was issued in parts of South Australia and Victoria on Sunday morning, a second front will bring showers to Melbourne throughout Sunday.

Southwesterly winds from a trough also bring colder temperatures.

The weather is likely to clear up during the week, with temperatures hovering around Melbourne’s usual high of 15 degrees, before a high chance of heavy rain over the weekend.

Adelaide recorded the coldest morning of the year on Sunday morning, with the mercury falling to 2.9 degrees, after a minimum of 3.1 degrees on Saturday morning.

But it was the regional inland towns that took the brunt of the cold, with the South Australian town of Renmark dropping as low as two degrees below zero and the Victorian town of Bendigo dropping to one degree below zero.

Clear and sunny skies are expected in Adelaide for most of the week before a new front is expected to bring rain over the weekend.

Heavy fog was prevalent in parts of western Sydney on Sunday morning, prompting a warning for motorists to drive slowly as visibility dipped below 200 metres.

Showers are forecast for the rest of Sunday in Sydney, likely to last into Monday before the weather clears and temperatures climb below 20 degrees during the week.

Showers are forecast for the rest of Sunday in Sydney, likely to last into Monday, before the weather clears and temperatures climb below 20 degrees during the week

Showers are forecast for the rest of Sunday in Sydney, likely to last into Monday, before the weather clears and temperatures climb below 20 degrees during the week

Wet weather is also in store for Brisbane and northern NSW on Sunday and into next week, with some forecasts predicting as much as 30-50mm could fall in central and south-east Queensland early next week

Wet weather is also in store for Brisbane and northern NSW on Sunday and into next week, with some forecasts predicting as much as 30-50mm could fall in central and south-east Queensland early next week

Wet weather is also in store for Brisbane and northern NSW on Sunday and next week, with some forecasts predicting as much as 30-50mm could fall in central and south-east Queensland early next week.

Sky News Australia meteorologist Alison Osborne said it was ‘quite a mixed bag of weather’ across the country.

“Most people are up for something other than a few towns away,” Osborne said.

Five-day forecast across Australia

Sydney

Sunday: Max 17C (incoming showers)

Monday: Min 11C, Max 18C (showers diminishing)

Tuesday: Min 9C, Max 19C (partly cloudy)

Wednesday: Min 9C, Max 19C (mostly sunny)

Thursday: Min 8C, Max 20C (Sunny)

Brisbane

Sunday: Max 22 (sunny)

Monday: Min 11C, Max 21C (shower or two)

Tuesday: Min 12C, Max 22C (partly cloudy)

Wednesday: Min 12C, Max 21C (partly cloudy)

Thursday: Min 11C, Max 22C (partly cloudy)

Adelaide

Sunday: Max 15C (clouds increasing)

Monday: Min 8C, Max 15C (cloudy)

Tuesday: Min 7C, Max 16C (partly cloudy)

Wednesday: Min 7C, Max 17C (Sunny)

Thursday: Min 9C, Max 19C (showers increasing)

Canberra

Sunday: Max 15C (mostly sunny)

Monday: Min -2C, Max 15C (mostly sunny)

Tuesday: Min -1C, Max 16C (mostly sunny)

Wednesday: Min -1C, Max 16C (mostly sunny)

Thursday: Min -2C, Max 15C (cloudy)

Melbourne

Sunday: Max 14C (squall or two)

Monday: Min 7C, Max 15C (cloudy)

Tuesday: Min 9C, Max 15C (cloudy)

Wednesday: Min 5C, Max 16C (partly cloudy)

Thursday: Min 7C, Max 17C (mostly sunny)

Perth

Sunday: Max 20C (sunny)

Monday: Min 9C, Max 21C (Sunny)

Tuesday: Min 11C, Max 18C (showers)

Wednesday: Min 9C, Max 15C (showers)

Thursday: Min 9C, Max 16C (shower or two)

Hobart

Sunday: Max 14C (partly cloudy)

Monday: Min 7C, Max 16C (partly cloudy)

Tuesday: Min 8C, Max 15C (partly cloudy)

Wednesday: Min 7C, Max 16C (cloudy)

Thursday: Min 7C, Max 16C (partly cloudy)

Darwin

Sunday: Max 31C (Sunny)

Monday: Min 16C, Max 28C (sunny)

Tuesday: Min 15C, Max 28C (sunny)

Wednesday: Min 15C, Max 29C (sunny)

Thursday: Min 17C, Max 31C (partly cloudy)

Source: Bureau of Meteorology