Victorians are set to shiver through the weekend with severe frost and plummeting temperatures forecast.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) issued a frost warning for all districts in Victoria on Friday morning, with temperatures dropping below 0C in many locations.
A partly cloudy outlook could be interrupted by a 20 per cent chance of showers, however the mercury is expected to only hit a high of 13C in Melbourne.
A similarly frosty reception also awaits on Saturday, as fog and frost is forecast for some areas, with a low of 2C and high of 14C during the day. The report for Sunday is a little warmer, with a minimum of 8C and high of 14C.
Stream more weather news live & on demand with Flash. 25+ news channels in 1 place. New to Flash? Try 1 month free. Offer ends 31 October, 2022 >
Sky News chief meteorologist Tom Saunders said the southeast coast of Australia will be hit with a “bitterly cold night” from Friday to Saturday, with temperatures set to be severely impacted.
A large band of morning frost could bring temperatures to -5C across large swathes of NSW, the ACT and Victoria.
“The actual temperatures are likely to drop well below zero, not just along the ranges,” he said.
By Saturday, severe frost is expected to develop from southern Queensland and across to NSW, Victoria and Tasmania.
“Along the ranges, many towns will dip below -5C; Canberra is currently forecast for -6C on Saturday morning,” Mr Saunders said.
In Sydney, a slight chance of rain on Friday is forecast to give way to a mostly sunny Saturday, and partly cloudy Sunday. A range of 6C to 16C is predicted for Saturday, followed by 6C to 17C on Sunday.
Temperatures in Canberra will struggle to peak past Friday’s chilly high of 13C. The BOM has forecast a low of -6C and high of 12C for Saturday, followed by a range between -2C and 13C for Sunday. While the weekend will be off to a sunny start, there may be a medium chance of showers on Sunday afternoon and evening.
Although no severe weather warnings are currently in place for Sydney or Canberra, sheep graziers on the Northern Tablelands, Central Tablelands, Southern Tablelands, South West Slopes, Snowy Mountains and ACT forecast districts have been warned to take care.
The BOM advises there is a “risk of losses of lambs and sheep“ if exposed to Friday’s cold temperatures, showers and south-westerly winds. This could also expand to parts of the Central Tablelands, Southern Tablelands and South West Slopes forecast districts from Saturday onwards.
Potential flooding fears hit WA
Australia’s west coast can also expect a wet and cold Friday through to Sunday thanks to an oncoming cold front. After a Friday morning of showers, strong winds and even potential thunderstorms, Perth residents can expect an 80 per cent chance of showers for Saturday, before the likelihood of rain fades to 50 per cent on Sunday. A high of 19C on Friday, will also fade to a range of 10C to 16C on Saturday, before dropping even more to 7C to 17C on Sunday.
However, Mr Saunders said that there could be a chance for flash flooding and localised minor river flooding by Wednesday in WA’s southwest. Large spread showers fuelled by the incoming Negative Indian Dipole will bring medium to heavy showers from Monday to Wednesday, with areas between Carnarvon to Eucla in the state’s west and south affected.
Areas between the north of Perth to Albany could even receive more than 50mm.
“These winds could be strong to gale force so it’s likely we’ll have damaging wind gusts and damaging surf and coastal erosion,” Mr Saunders said.
In Adelaide, Friday’s sunny outlook could also give way to a partly cloudy Saturday, with a medium chance of showers in the late afternoon and evening. and a temperature range from 9C to 17C.
This is followed by very high chance of showers on Sunday, with the temperature also dropping to a high of 15C.
