Severe thunderstorms and a heatwave to batter Australia – what the weather is like in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and more
Severe thunderstorms will hit Australia’s east coast, while a heatwave will bring scorching temperatures to the north of the country.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) on Tuesday forecast a storm system stretching across the east coast from Gladstone in Queensland to the Hunter Region in NSW.
The strongest storms are forecast to hit areas close to the border on Tuesday, such as the Gold Coast and Byron Bay, before the system moves inland.
BOM senior meteorologist Miriam Bradbury told Daily Mail Australia the severe storm is not “everyday” and could lead to dangerous conditions in the region.
Ms Bradbury warned of winds ‘strong enough to down tree branches and power lines’, intense rainfall causing flash flooding and hail more than 2cm wide.
The low trough that causes the storms also causes heat waves on Australia’s northern coast.
Ms Bradbury said the weather system is behaving differently in the more northern regions and has instead stagnated sultry conditions.
The heat waves are expected to intensify over the course of the week, with another system moving in to break and break the heat wave.
Severe weather conditions along the east and north coasts have left millions of Australians preparing for severe storms, while others are left to sweat through a brutal heatwave
Ms Bradbury said heavy rain will continue to hit coastal areas, while the chance of a severe storm will remain dangerous for parts of central Queensland and the southern interior on Wednesday.
However, the risk factor is expected to decrease later in the week as the country moves further away from populated areas and loses power.
Ms Bradbury explained that the vastly different weather systems were partly due to Australia’s sheer size, which allowed numerous patterns to occur at once.
The agency also issued a number of wind warnings for the Byron Coast, Coffs Coast, Macquarie Coast and Hunter Coast in NSW on Tuesday.
These warnings are expected to disappear on Wednesday when Queensland’s Moreton Bay and Gold Coast regions experience intense winds.
Sheep grazers in parts of inland NSW have been warned that cold temperatures, rain showers and wind could cause livestock losses.
Coastal areas of northern NSW and southern Queensland are likely to be hit by severe storms on Tuesday, followed by heavy rain on Wednesday as the system moves inland
Sydney
Wednesday: Cloudy. Small chance of showers. Southerly wind 15 to 20 km/h, trending southeasterly in the morning, becoming light in the late afternoon. Min 14C Max 20C
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Light winds, light during the day to 15 to 25 km/h, then light in the evening. Min 13C Max 25C
Friday: Mostly sunny day. Small chance of showers, probably in the evening. Wind south to southwest 15 to 25 km/h, trending south to southeast 15 to 20 km/h in the morning then light in the afternoon. Min 15C Max 22C
Saturday: Cloudy. Small chance of a shower, probably during the morning. Wind southerly 15 to 20 km/h, turning southeast 15 to 25 km/h in the morning. Min 15C Max 20C
Melbourne
Wednesday: Sunny. In the early morning there are patches of frost around the nearby hills. Light winds from north to northeast at 15 to 20 km/h in the late afternoon. Min. 6C Max. 21C
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Small chance of showers, probably in the morning and afternoon. Winds from the north at 20 to 30 km/h, increasing to 30 to 45 km/h in the morning and turning southwesterly 20 to 30 km/h in the afternoon. Min 13C Max 20C
Friday: Cloudy. Small chance of showers. The light wind will become westerly from 15 to 25 km/h in the morning and will tend to the southwest during the day. Min. 8C Max. 17C
Saturday: Partly cloudy. In the morning the wind will be light from the south, 15 to 20 km/hour. Min. 11C Max. 18C
The weather system (pictured) is expected to move inland on Wednesday before losing most of its strength as it crosses Central Queensland on Thursday
Brisbane
Wednesday: Cloudy. Very high chance of showers, probably from late morning. The chance of thunder. Winds will be southeasterly 15 to 20 km/h, becoming light early in the morning and becoming southeasterly 20 to 30 km/h in the morning. Min 18C Max 24C
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Moderate chance of showers, probably in the morning and afternoon. Wind southeast 15 to 20 km/h, trending east 15 to 25 km/h during the day, then light in the evening. Min 17C Max 23C.
Friday: Partly cloudy. Small chance of showers, probably in the morning and afternoon. Light winds, becoming northeasterly 15 to 20 km/h in the afternoon, then becoming light in the evening. Min. 15 °C Max. 26°C
Saturday: Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers. Light winds becoming easterly during the day, 15 to 20 km/h. Min 16C Max 26C
Perth
Wednesday: Small chance of showers in the early morning. Mostly sunny day. Wind southwest 15 to 20 km/h, turning southeast 20 to 30 km/h late morning and early afternoon. Min 13C Max 23C
Thursday: Sunny. Wind southeast 15 to 25 km/h, becoming east 25 to 35 km/h in the morning and decreasing to 15 to 25 km/h in the afternoon. Min 11C Max 28C
Friday: Mostly sunny. Wind northeasterly 20 to 30 km/h, trending northwesterly to northeasterly 15 to 20 km/h during the day, then trending northwesterly to southwesterly in the afternoon Min 17C Max 30C
Saturday: Partly cloudy. During the day the wind will be weak from the southwest, 15 to 25 km/h. Min 15C Max 24C
The storms have the potential to bring huge hailstones more than 2cm wide, as well as destructive winds powerful enough to down tree limbs and power lines
Adelaide
Wednesday: Sunny. Wind easterly 15 to 20 km/h, trending northeasterly 20 to 30 km/h early in the morning, then trending northerly 15 to 25 km/h late in the evening. Min 9C Max 26C
Thursday: Mostly sunny. Winds from the north 15 to 25 km/h, turning southwest to 25 to 35 km/h in the morning, then south to 15 to 25 km/h in the evening. Min 12C Max 20C
Friday: Partly cloudy. Light winds, shifting to southeast to southwest 15 to 25 km/h during the day, then light in the evening. Min 7C Max 21C
Saturday: Partly cloudy. Wind from the east 15 to 20 km/h, trending northeasterly during the day. Min 9C Max 24C
Hobart
Wednesday: Sunny. Risk of frost in the north. Light wind. Min. 4C Max. 19C
Thursday: Partly cloudy. High chance of showers, probably in the morning and afternoon. Wind north to northwest 25 to 35 km/h, turning west in the afternoon. Min 7C Max 20C
Friday: Partly cloudy. Moderate chance of showers, probably in the morning and afternoon. Wind west 25 to 40 km/h. Min 9C Max 16C
Saturday: Cloudy. Wind west 15 to 25 km/h. Min 7C Max 17C
Canberra
Wednesday: Sunny. Risk of frost in the early morning. Light winds, northeasterly 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon, then light in the evening. Min 2C Max 19C
Thursday: Mostly sunny. The chance of morning frost. Light winds, west to northwest 20 to 30 km/h during the day, then light in the evening. Min 2C Max 23C
Friday: Partly cloudy. Small chance of showers. Light winds becoming west to northwest, 15 to 25 km/h, in the afternoon, becoming light in the evening. Min 5C Max 23C
Saturday: Partly cloudy. Light winds during the day from an easterly to northeasterly direction, 15 to 20 km/h. Min 5C Max 21C
Darwin
Wednesday: Sunny. Light winds, east to northeast 15 to 25 km/h in the middle of the day, then light in the evening. Min 25C Max 36C
Thursday: Mostly sunny. Light wind, during the day shifting from northeast to southeast, 15 to 25 km/hour, trending northwest to northeast in the afternoon. Min 26C Max 36C
Friday: Mostly sunny. Small chance of showers. Light winds, light to northeasterly during the day at 15 to 25 km/h and light in the evening. Min 26C Max 26C
Saturday: Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers. The chance of thunder. During the day, light winds from north to northeast, 15 to 25 km/h. Min 25C Max 35C