Winter is here: Icy air and hail is set to blast Australia’s east coast as a cold front moves in - so will it be freezing where you are?
- A cold front will bring icy temperatures and hail storms across Victoria today
- Dangerous winds will batter the south and prompted a severe weather warning
- Melbourne will see a sharp drop in temperature, showers and strong winds
- The cold front will bring chilly temperatures and strong winds to the east coast
- Australians have been warned to expect a 'wetter than average' winter season
The first day of winter will see a vigorous cold front bring freezing weather and storms across Australia's east coast.
A low pressure system will move through Victoria and bring rain and potentially dangerous winds to Melbourne on Monday afternoon.
'It will feel like a proper winter's day,' Weatherzone meteorologist Brett Dutschke told Daily Mail Australia.
A vigorous cold front will hit Victoria on Monday and temperatures in Melbourne (pictured) will not reach past 13C as the state is blasted with dangerous icy winds and hailstorms
The cold front will also bring strong winds and showers to Australia's east coast. Pictured: Sydney's central business district was battered with heavy rains in early March
The cold front will bring significant rainfall with some areas of the state expected to receive about 5mm while others could see 20mm to 30mm.
'Showers could reach all throughout Victoria and some of the showers contain small hail, so that can lead to extra problems travelling out on the road,' Mr Dutschke said.
A severe weather warning is in place for coastal locations in the state's southwest, central districts and parts of the Gippsland region.
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Mr Dutschke said 'showers will be most frequent and heaviest in the southwest' and noted there was 'a good chance of damaging winds in the south of the state'.
The cool change will see temperatures drop substantially, with Melbourne forecast to reach a top of just 13C, a sharp fall from 17C on Sunday.
Mr Dutschke said: 'Factor in the wind and it will feel a few degrees colder than the actual temperature.'
The meteorologist said there would be another cold front bringing more showers to Victoria's south on Tuesday that had no severe weather warnings attached.
Pictured: The cold front will sweep across Victoria and into New South Wales on Monday
A severe weather warning is in place for coastal locations in Victoria's's southwest, central districts and parts of the Gippsland region. Pictured: Mordialloc Harbour in Melbourne
Australians have been warned to prepare for a wetter than average winter. Pictured: A Melbourne local rugged up against the chilly temperature on Monday morning
Victoria's cold front will also bring rain and cooler temperatures to Australia's east coast.
'Sydney will feel it tonight and tomorrow,' Mr Dutschke said.
'Sydney will also be experiencing winds and be comfortably mild with a cooler change later in the day.
'It will start to feel pretty chilly in the evening.'
Mr Dutschke said Canberra would also see showers thanks to the cold front.
'It's going to be pretty cold and windy,' he explained.
The cold front reflected that Australia would experience more cold days than the average winter season. Pictured: Pedestrians in Melbourne wearing layers to fight the cold in May
Adelaide will experience similar weather on Monday with a 'pretty chilly day with winds easing and showers clearing'.
Mr Dutschke said Perth would escape the cold front to have a 'dry and windy day'.
Brisbane would also be 'comfortably mild' and see temperatures in the mid-twenties.
Darwin will be sunny with temperatures in the low-thirties.
Mr Dutschke said 'Hobart will be warmer than Melbourne, Adelaide and Canberra which is a little bit unusual.'
It will avoid the cold front and experience a dry day with a top of 16C.
Mr Dutschke said the cold front reflected what the weather had in store for the rest of Australia's winter season.
'Most of the country will be experiencing a wetter than average season.
'We're likely to have more cold days than the average winter because of the cloud and rain that is around,' he explained.
