Storm-force
winds sweep southeastern states 
3/12/02 |
 An
unusual sight on an Australian weather map, a high of 1020 not too
far from Southern Ocean lows of 949 and 960hPa. This is the surface
chart for 4pm EST today. BoM |
Winds gusted to storm force (90km/h and above) this evening across SA, western NSW, much of Victoria and exposed parts of Tasmania, bringing chaos to Melbourne and causing damage and danger elsewhere. Strong pressure gradients developed between an exceptionally deep low pressure complex moving eastwards well to the southwest of Tasmania and a high pressure ridge over SE Qld. By 10pm EST the main low, some 2,100km SW of Tasmania, was analysed with the impressively low central pressure of 945hPa, while the lowest pressure recorded over southern Victoria was 991.5 at 9pm at Avalon Airport near Geelong, the lowest in about 4 years. With a pressure of 1018.0 at Coffs Harbour at the same time, the gradient across the southeast was guaranteed to produce an eventful night.
Emergency crews were kept busy in Melbourne during the day with trees brought down on houses, and a house roof blown off and a scaffolding collapsing onto a factory in North Melbourne. Five aircraft were damaged at Essendon Airport, and a nursing home at Warragul in the Latrobe Valley lost its roof. The wind dropped a little late afternoon, but increased to even higher levels during the evening as the trough shown entering western Victoria on the chart above crossed the city (see report for 3 September). High wind gusts during the evening included 106km/h at Melbourne Airport, 111 at Dunns Hill near Mt Dandenong, and a hurricane-force 122km/h at Fawkner Beacon which is located in Port Phillip Bay 6km west of Sandringham and 10km SW of St Kilda. Most Melbourne area anemometers recorded peak gusts between 85 and 95km/h (see the extremes below for details.) Farther afield, Eildon Fire Tower recorded a top gust of 119km/h, and the summits of Mt Hotham and Mt Buller recorded 115km/h.
The east of South Australia, western NSW and northwestern Victoria were shrouded in blowing dust and sandstorms as winds averaged 40km/h but gusted to storm force. Strong inland gusts included 85km/h at Woomera and Oodnadatta, 95 at Marree and Yunta, all in SA, and 89 at Broken Hill in NSW. At Broken Hill, power lines were brought down in the City overnight into Tuesday.