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• Times stated are the clock time in force in the relevant state or territory
• Stories, including those in the archives, are as new and corrected information becomes available, with updates underlined

Acknowledgments: Australian Weather News gratefully acknowledges the Bureau of Meteorology as the collector and main source of meteorological data in Australia, along with the thousands of observers who record the weather and rainfall daily. I also thank Don White, Michael Bath, Jimmy Deguara, Jacob Aufdemkampe , and Michael Thompson who routinely provide me with much appreciated information.

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Gale to storm force winds were widespread in southwest WA as a cold front associated with a deepening low about 1000km south of the state crossed the area. The winds averaged around 90km/h and gusted nearly to 120km/h in exposed parts, and strong winds with galeforce gusts were reported further inland. Surprisingly little damage was reported from the worst-affected area, which stretched from Perth southwards to the southwest coast. Downed powerpoles and tree debris closed four roads in the Bunbury area, and there were isolated reports of home damage across the region. Cape Naturaliste, just to the west of the city of Bunbury, reported the highest wind gust of 117km/h at 3.22am, while the state's farthest southwest point of land, Cape Leeuwin, recorded sustained winds above galeforce from around 7.30 last night to about 9.30 this morning, with a top 10-minute average wind of 93km/h at 5.33am, and a peak gust of 111km/h at 4.30am. Other high peak gusts reported were 94km/h at Bunbury, 106 at Busselton Jetty, 81 at Jandakot Airport in southern Perth, 83 at Mandurah, 94 at Ocean Reef in northern Perth, 93 on Rottnest Island and 87 at Swanbourne in eastern Perth. Brief heavy rain accompanied the front, with 13mm in 3 hours to midnight reported at Cape Leeuwin, and 18mm between midnight and 3am at Kalamunda and Dwellingup.

While rain has eased on the NSW Mid North Coast, flooding and saturated ground are still causing problems between Taree and Coffs Harbour. The Pacific Highway was still closed this morning by backwaters from the Manning River north of Taree, and the highway is sufficiently damaged for the Roads and Traffic Authority to recommend alternative routes. The highway was also closed in Coffs Harbour for several hours overnight when a falling tree brought down powerlines. Many roads in the Hastings and Macleay River valleys around Port Macquarie and Kempsey remain closed by floodwaters, while a landslip in Nambucca Heads early this morning caused the evacuation of 8 mobile homes. Heavy seas along the NSW North Coast were abating, but two beachfront houses at Byron Bay were in danger of collapse due to dune and beach erosion. The Hastings River peaked at Koree Island at 14.40m at 4.15 this morning with major flooding, the Bellinger River at Bellingen peaked at 4.61m at 6.45am with minor flooding, while the Manning at Taree peaked at 2.42m at 4pm, below minor flood level. The Macleay at Kempsey peaked at 4.21m around 8am with minor flooding, and a second peak of the same height occurred at 10.45am Saturday on the next major high tide.

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More gales were reported around the WA southwest coast this morning as a trough in the southwesterly airflow following yesterday's change tightened the pressure gradient as it passed. Cape Leeuwin reported sustained galeforce winds (34 knots and above) from soon after midnight to around 8am, with gusts reaching 93 to 96km/h several times during the morning. Fogs were widespread across eastern states this morning. With a ridge of high pressure giving calm, stable conditions from Tasmania to western Queensland, the fogs formed on abundant moisture from recent rain and extended from southern Queensland through the eastern two-thirds of NSW and across much of Victoria and Tasmania. While they mostly cleared by late morning, fog in the Derwent Valley west of Hobart lingered right through the day.

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Windy, stormy weather buffeted southern South Australia and western Victoria today as a deep low, with a central pressure around 972hPa, sat west of Tasmania throwing a succession of troughs with bands of thunderstorms at the two states. Rainfall was intense, but with the storm and shower bands moving at around 110km/h, falls in any one location were brief. Elliston registered 12mm in 3 hours to 6pm, while Kent Town and Edinburgh AP in Adelaide and Mt Crawford in the Adelaide Hills recorded 11mm in the 3 hours to 9pm. More dramatic was the wind, with gale to storm force gusts accompanying each trough. Among the higher gusts recorded were Neptune Island 102km/h at 10am and again at 7.30pm, Cape Willoughby 93km/h at 3.28pm, Adelaide Kent Town 61km/h at 10.13pm, Mt Lofty summit 98km/h at 6.30pm, Mt Crawford 93km/h at 6.30pm, Nuriootpa 83km/h at 10.38am, Roseworthy in Adelaide 93km/h at 1.32pm, and Strathalbyn 98km/h at 2.22pm. Neptune Island reported nearly continuous galeforce winds from mid-morning. In western Victoria, Hamilton recorded 14mm between 6 and 9pm as a band of storms swept past, while Airey's Inlet registered a peak gust of 78km/h at 10.30pm.

With a strong low to the west of Tasmania, the state received some moderate rainfall along its northern coast overnight and into the early afternoon, causing minor flooding in some streams. Erriba and Meander recorded 61mm and in 30 hours to 3pm. The Mersey peaked at Kimberley at 1.65m at 3pm, while the Meander at Meander peaked at 2.3m at 4pm.

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Southeastern states experienced a return to wintry weather today as a deep low moved slowly southeast under Tasmania maintaining its intensity. South Australia received the brunt of the bad weather as a small secondary low formed west of Port Lincoln during the early hours, then rammed across the coast near Adelaide around 9am with a central pressure of about 997hPa. It brought severe winds and torrential rain, though damage appears to have been limited to some rain-induced landslides, and wind-induced power interruptions. Port Lincoln recorded 17mm of rain in 3 hours to 6am, while between 3 and 9am Neptune Island registered 34mm and Stenhouse Bay on the Yorke Peninsula 35mm. Parawa, in the hills south of Adelaide, received 37mm between 6 and 9am. Strongest wind gusts with the system were 87km/h at Port Lincoln at 7.19am, 91 at Neptune Island at 8.02am, and 106 on Mount Lofty summit at 8.11am. After crossing the coast, the small low slowed but maintained its intensity, lying near Mildura mid afternoon then gradually dissipating. Strong winds continued to be reported from inland SA centres during the day with gusts of 94km/h reported from Snowtown at 10.24am, 87 at Nuriootpa at 12.30pm, and 83km/h at Roseworthy in suburban Adelaide at 12.15am.

The deep low under Tasmania, however, brought cheers from skiers as the NSW and Victorian Alps received their best snowfalls so far this season in a moist, cool northwesterly airstream. Moderate to heavy snow was reported all day from resorts in both states. Charlotte Pass improved its snow depth from 50cm at 9am Sunday to 80cm at 9am this morning and 90cm at 3pm. The low also brought strong winds to northern Tasmania where a house was unroofed, while on the Blue Mountains in New South Wales winds gusted to 85km/h at Mount Boyce.

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Brief heavy rain fell in the Kalbarri region of WA as a frontal system associated with a small cut-off low crossed the coast. Kalbarri PO recorded 28.2mm in the 24 hours to 9am Wednesday, 15mm falling between noon and 3pm today. Other stations in the region reported around 10 to 15mm for the 24 hours.

Substantial snowfalls continued in the NSW Snowy Mountains, with Perisher Valley registering 40mm precipitation (equivalent to about 40cm of new snow) in the 30 hours to 3pm today. Falls in the Victorian Alps were light, while light snowfalls continued in the Tasmanian Central Plateau. Gale force winds continued in Bass Strait and around coastal Tasmania.

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A further cold front swept across southeastern Australia today, bringing storm force winds to Bass Strait and nearby coasts. Wilsons Promintory in Victoria reported gales from early morning, and sustained hurricane force winds of 128km/h at its 6pm observation, around the time the front passed. Winds there had only decreased to a sustained 107km/h by the 9pm observation. The wind at Wilsons Prom tends to read high because of the lighthouse's exposure on a high, smooth rocky cape. The report from Kingfish B oil rig, about 20km SE of Sale of sustained winds of 72km/h and gusts to 87 would be more representative of conditions in the Strait. Cape Grim in northwest Tasmania reported sustained (10 minute average) winds of 89 to 91km/h between 5 and 7pm with a peak gust of 124km/h.

Light snow was reported during the day from Oberon on the NSW Central Tablelands, and across the Tasmanian Central Plateau. Snow showers continued on the Victorian and NSW Alps.

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Winter gripped Tasmania today in the wake of a strong southwesterly change which crossed the island yesterday evening. Snowfalls down to about the 600 metre level were reported, along with gales from coastal and highland stations. The main cold air field crossed the state during the early morning hours, with the thickness of the atmosphere between the 1000 and 500hPa pressure levels, a common measure of lower-atmosphere conditions, dropping to around 5250 metres. Anything below around 5280m is regarded as exceptionally cold. A strong southerly jet helped to intensify the short-lived cold outbreak. Heavy precipitation totals were reported from western and southwestern locations, with Mt Read behind Zeehan recording 62mm and Strathgordon 47mm in the 24 hours to 9am.

Gale force winds continued in Bass Strait during the morning, with Gabo Island reporting sustained winds of 75km/h gusting to 96 to 102km/h at its 3 and 6am observations.

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Heavy rain fell today over much of southeast Queensland and the far northeastern corner of New South Wales. A pool of cold upper air drifted across eastern Queensland during the morning giving falls of 10 to 25mm to much of the east coast by 9am, then shifted southeast to give prolonged moderate to heavy falls in the state's southeast and the NSW far North Coast during the afternoon and evening. Heaviest falls in the 24 hours to 9am were in the southeast Queensland inland, with Dunollie 42.2mm, Proston 31.6, Mundubbera 31.0 and Glenwood 30.6 topscoring. During the day, rain intensified in the southeast as the colder air moved overhead. Gayndah recorded 23mm between 3 and 9am, but a further 43mm to 3pm. Maroochydore registered 57mm between 9am and 9pm, while Tewantin recorded 76mm in 6 hours to 6pm. Brisbane Airport's total between 6am and 6pm was 41mm. Over the border, Cape Byron gauged 40mm between midday and 6pm. Highest totals for the 24 hours to 9am Sunday (though most of the rain fell on Saturday) were 97mm at Rainbow Beach, Double Island Point 73 and Lake Cooroibah 68.

It was an unusually warm day for mid-winter in the southwestern quarter of WA today. Perth recorded its fourth-warmest July day on record when the mercury rose to 25.4C, just 0.9C below the record set on two consecutive days in 1976. Karnet, in the ranges behind Perth, recorded a top of 22.7, breaking its previous July extreme in 25 years of recording. Temperatures were generally 4 to 8 above average over all of WA southwest of a line from north of Carnarvon to east of Esperance. The warm conditions were produced by a tongue of warm air drifting down from the tropics ahead of a stagnating front well west of Perth.

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A locally tight pressure gradient between a 1036hPa high near Tasmania and a 1008 low in the Coral Sea produced galeforce winds on southeast Queensland's offshore islands this afternoon. Cape Moreton reported constant gale to stormforce winds from around 4pm with a top sustained speed of 89km/h at 7.20pm, with winds gusting to around 90km/h much of the time, peaking at 102km/h at 7.30pm. Double Island Point reported similar conditions, with a top gust of 104km/h at 9pm.

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Gales and storm force winds continued to give anemometers on southeast Queensland's offshore islands a workout throughout the day. Cape Moreton's sustained windspeed varied between 65 and 96km/h, with gusts around 90 to 110km/h, peaking at 115km/h at 7.20am. Double Island Point's wind was a little lighter, but still exceeded gale force all day, with a top sustained speed of 94km/h and a top gust of 113km/h, both at midday.

Abnormally warm conditions in the south and cool conditions in the north of WA this morning produced a reversal of the normal north to south temperature variation. Broome Airport's minimum of 6.0 was 7.6 below average, while in the WA wheat belt Paynes Find and Morawa reported minima around 14C, 8 or 9 above average. In eastern Victoria, Orbost recorded its coldest temperature in 39 years of record with a reading of -3.2, breaking the previous record of -3.1 set on 5 July 1957. Further west, East Sale Airport's minimum of -4 was possibly its coldest morning since 1982

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An influx of cool, dry air from the south gave much of the Northern Territory Top End, and parts of Cape York Peninsula in Queensland an unusually cool night. Minima were more than 5 degrees below normal across much of the region. Timber Creek, 240km SW of Katherine, recorded a minimum of 7.8C, 7.2 below the August average, while Lockhart River, on the Cape York Peninsula coast 340km north of Cooktown reported a minimum of 12.0, 7.2 below. In Victoria's Gippsland, East Sale Airport experienced its second near-record cold morning in a row when the minimum dropped to -5 degrees, 8 below normal..

Galeforce winds continued on SE Queensland's exposed coast and offshore islands, but abated late morning.

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An approaching trough and frontal system gave the southeastern quarter of Western Australia an unseasonably warm day today, with top temperatures 6 to 10 degrees above average across the region. Eyre, on the coast south of Madura Station, reported a maximum of 27.9, 10 above, while Balgair Station and Eucla Airport reported tops of 27 and 26, over 8 above normal. Brief heavy rain accompanied the trough and front as they crossed the west coast during the morning and early afternoon. Lancelin, on the coast 100km north of Perth, registered 30mm between 3am and 3pm, with 16mm falling between midday and 3pm. Cunderdin, 135km ENE of the capital, recorded 14mm between midday and 3pm before the front passed.

A high pressure system anchored over southeastern Australia combined with a cool, dry airmass have produced some cold nights over the NSW Southern Tablelands. Kosciuszko Chalet, near Charlotte Pass, has reported minima of -12.5, -12.5 and -13.0 over the past three nights compared to an average for July of -6.9. The Visitors Centre in Cooma has reported a similar variation from normal, with minima of -8.3, -8.5 and -8.5.

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A strengthening northwesterly stream ahead of a series of fronts approaching Tasmania gave exposed areas in Tasmania, Victoria and southern NSW strong to galeforce winds this morning. NSW alpine stations reported blizzard conditions, though with little freshly falling snow.

A broad area of central Australia, covering SW Qld, NW NSW, the north of SA and southern NT experienced an unusually warm day, with both overnight and daytime temperatures 6 to 10 above the July average. Charleville and Barcaldine in Queensland and Curtin Springs in the Northern Territory reported minima nearly 9 above average with 13.0, 16.3 and 12.0 respectively. Tibooburra in northwest NSW recorded a top temperature of 26.3, 8.6 above normal.

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Cold weather has followed the fronts which crossed southeastern states yesterday. Top temperatures today at some Victorian and NSW alpine stations did not get above -3 degrees, with Mt Hotham, Falls Creek and Thredbo Crackenback all reporting maxima between -3.0 and -3.5. Light snow fell on the Tasmanian Central Plateaux, and stations on the Great Australian Bight reported minima 10 below yesterday's figures with -1.0 at Ceduna Airport and -2.9 at Eyre.

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