Spring is only days away but southeastern Australia is shivering through a mid winter cold outbreak with temperatures plummeting as much as six degrees below average. The temperature in Melbourne on Thursday stayed in single figures for the first time in 13 months, reaching only 9.9 degrees. It was Melbourne's coldest August day in four years and second coldest in 30 years. Melbourne Airport reached only eight degrees, their coldest day in over 10 years and coldest in August for 38 years. The low temperatures were accompanied by widespread rain. By 6pm 12mm had fallen in the city, Melbourne's wettest day in a month. The cold snap is the result of a strong southerly airstream that has spread over southeastern Australia behind a front. Temperatures on Friday will remain around five below normal across Victoria with most suburbs of Melbourne likely to reach only about 11 or 12 degrees.