Snow has coated greater Sydney’s Blue Mountains and south east Queensland as wild weather descends on Australia’s east coast.
Strong gusty winds, heavy rain, and slick roads in Katoomba and Mount Victoria resulted in warnings to Blue Mountains residents that they might be better off forgoing any planned travel to Sydney early this morning, and while the Great Western Highway has since re-opened drivers are being warned to exercise extreme caution.
BETWEEN BLUE MOUNTAINS & SYDNEY: Avoid travel due to severe weather conditions & a no. of incidents on Great Western Hwy, which is closed at Katoomba & Mount Victoria. Bells Line of Rd is closed at Clarence due to a truck breakdown. Check https://t.co/gH5hSRPp6Z for the latest. pic.twitter.com/o1w6Fk5Tzj
— Live Traffic Sydney (@LiveTrafficSyd) June 3, 2019
Meanwhile, winds as strong as 130km per hour have been reported in southern NSW, and locals across the east coast have shared photos of the weather chaos, including snow falling on the Granite Belt (QLD), in Blackheath, and in Oberon.
Snow ❄️ on the Granite Belt this morning. @abcbrisbane @abcnews
Thanks to Marion Carrick for the video. ⛄️ pic.twitter.com/Hm81xzwHzS— Shelley Lloyd 🎙 (@shelleymlloyd) June 3, 2019
It’s all happening here at Oberon NSW this morning! ⛄️❄️ A day of weather extremes across the country! pic.twitter.com/BkSkoxmZbt
— Jessica Ridley (@jessicaridleytv) June 3, 2019
Snow!! Magic Hour in Blackheath. Woke up to this special visitor! ❄️❄️❄️ #Blackheath #Blue mountains #snow ❄️ pic.twitter.com/V9i7wswugM
— Josephine Pennicott (@talepeddlerJo) June 3, 2019
When all you want to do is jump in the car and chase the snow! 🚗🤠📹❄️ I’m having severe SNOW FOMO.
These snaps from Ben Lomond, south of hometown Glen Innes, in northern NSW. 📸: Leigh and Jeannette Bush.@abcnews @BreakfastNews @ABCRural @ABCemergency #snow #weather pic.twitter.com/AuFcAfq7AL— Kim Honan (@kimhonan) June 3, 2019
These photos of snow at Wayo, west of Goulburn, were sent to me by Kath Campbell. She said it was raining when she went to bed, but started snowing at 1.30am. pic.twitter.com/NwJHIHgSrZ
— Emily Barton (@emilybarton1211) June 3, 2019
The Bureau of Meteorology is reporting an intense cold front along the coast and the weather radars certainly don’t look calm. if you squint, you can just make out Sydney. The extreme weather is also hitting Victoria, however much of it was received overnight. State Emergency Services received over 140 requests for assistance yesterday, including one woman who had to be pulled from her car after it became trapped in flood waters on Monday evening.
The weather is expected to move quickly along the coast but Sky News Weather Chief Meteorologist Tom Saunders said it will still have a major impact. “The strong winds will move away by Wednesday,” he said, “and the rain will ease back to showers along the coastal fringe.”
