A cold blast will strike most of Australia as temperatures plunge to record lows and an entire state braces for a week of heavy rain.
Forecasters say the ‘unseasonal’ rain falling across the northern tropics last week and over the weekend will now head east over the next three days.
Northeast Queensland was battered with heavy rain on Saturday while Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory received 37.6mm of rain the following day – the highest Dry Season rain since July 1978.
Bedford Downs in Western Australia was drenched with 86mm of rain while Lajamanu in the NT copped up to 68mm.
The rain and accompanying cloudband will on Monday head east to wreck havoc on Queensland’s inland areas and possibly the coast.
Queensland will be lashed with cold rain this week, with most of the state to receive between 30-80mm over the next 72 hours.
Queensland will be lashed with cold rain this week, with most of the state to receive between 30-80mm over the next 72 hours (pictured, a woman rugs up in Sydney)
The Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane are forecast to pick up about 30mm of rain from Wednesday through to Friday.
Mount Isa, in the northwest, has already received up to 80mm of rain.
Camooweal, near Queensland’s western border, received 25.4mm of rain by 9am on Sunday, marking the town”s highest July rainfall total in 37 years.
The ‘unseasonably heavy rain’ will target Queensland until at least Wednesday, before the cloudband travels into the southeastern states.
The cloudband is also responsible for the freezing daytime temperatures this week with Alice Springs shivering through some of its coolest days since 2010.
Temperatures reached just 8.7C on Friday, the coldest day of any month since 2014 and 11 degrees below the average.
Further south, gusty winds over southern NSW saw Sydney Airport cancel almost 50 flights on Saturday with dozens more forced to be delayed.
The Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane are forecast to pick up about 30mm of rain from Wednesday through to Friday as temperatures plummet to record lows
On Saturday, the Bureau of Meteorology issued a strong wind warning for much of NSW coast from Port Macquarie right down to Batemans Bay.
The westerly winds reached up to 39km/hour, with gusts of 61km/hour, causing potentially dangerous crosswinds for incoming and departing planes.
More than 100 flights were cancelled or delayed in and out of Sydney on Friday, with similar scenes for those trying to travel over the weekend.
The airport was forced to use its only east-west runway, rather than its twin north-south tarmacs just as the NSW school holidays kicked off.
Only ‘light winds’ have been forecast for Sydney on Monday, with the chance of a light shower and temperatures between 10 and 17 degrees.
There will be a high chance of showers on Tuesday, however skies will clear by Wednesday afternoon with the sun to return by Friday.
Canberra will also remain chilly this week, with showers on Tuesday to linger for most of the week along with freezing minimum temperatures.
Further south in Victoria, temperatures will plunge even lower as residents shiver through a cool and cloudy Monday with tops of just 14C.
Similar conditions will be experienced in Adelaide with heavy rain set to bucket over the state from Wednesday and last well into the weekend.
The ‘unseasonably heavy rain’ will target Queensland until at least Wednesday, before the cloudband travels into the southeastern states
In Hobart, minimum temperatures will plummet to just 3C on Monday.
Temperatures will remain icy this week, with light rain to fall over the weekend.
Perth will also remain windy and cold this week, with 10-20mm of rain forecast on Monday as well as the chance of a thunderstorm in the state’s southwest.
The WA capital will receive showers for most of the week, with maximum temperatures of 19C on Saturday and 18C on Sunday.
In the NT, Darwin will receive some cloud cover on Monday as well as light winds of 15 to 25km/hour due to pick up in the afternoon.
Darwin will remain dry for most of the week with temperatures to reach a maximum of 33C on Thursday and Friday and lows of 19C on Sunday.
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