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Ben Domensino, 24 Apr 2017, 1:36 AM UTC

Rain, storms and snow loom for Australia's southeast

Rain, storms and snow loom for Australia's southeast
The best rain in three-to-six months will soak parts of the Murray-Darling Basin during the next three days, before a wintry blast grips Australia's southeast. A low pressure trough will produce widespread rain and storms in parts of Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, the ACT and New South Wales between Monday and Wednesday. Rain and storms will spread across South Australia today before moving into western and central Victoria and far western New South Wales this afternoon and tonight. On Tuesday, showers and thunderstorms will develop over remaining districts in Victoria, much of Tasmania, New South Wales and the ACT. The passage of the trough during Monday and Tuesday will bring rainfall totals of 10-20mm in parts of all five states and territories. Some areas are likely to collect more than 50mm during this event, most likely about the higher ranges in northeast Victoria and southeast New South Wales, where flash flooding is a risk. Noteworthy rainfall is expected in northern Victoria and southern New South Wales during this event. Yarrawonga, Wangaratta, Benalla and Menindee all have the potential to see 20mm, which would be would be their heaviest rain since September or October. The rain-bearing trough will move out into the Tasman Sea on Wednesday but it will be followed closely by a strong cold front. While this system won't bring as much rain, it will will produce another burst of showers and storms across the southeastern states and cause a significant drop in temperature. The antarctic air mass behind this front will produce hail, low-level snow and the coldest weather in at least six months. Wednesday is forecast to be the coldest day in seven-to-eight months for Melbourne (14C), Canberra (12C), Griffith (13C), Goulburn (11C), Wangaratta (14C), Shepparton (14C) and Mildura (15C). Thursday is tipped to be the coldest since last winter in Parramatta (17C), Penrith (17C), Armidale (10C), Dubbo (13C) and Orange (7C). Snow may fall down to about 700 metres above sea level in Tasmania and 800-900 metres in Victoria on Wednesday or Thursday morning. Snow is likely about the alpine areas and could even fall on the higher terrain of the Central and Northern Tablelands in New South Wales. Places that may see snow during the middle of this week include Mount Wellington, parts of the Grampians, Mount Macedon and the Oberon Plateau. It's worth noting that snowfall will be dependent on the position of an upper-level low pressure system on Wednesday and Thursday, so some of these area may miss out. The front will move out into the Tasman Sea on Thursday allowing milder and drier conditions to return at the end of the working week.
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