Snow causes havoc across eastern Australia – Video

By Robert On October 12, 2012 · Leave a Comment

The Bureau of Meteorology says snow falls have occurred right along the Great Dividing Range and as far north as Queensland’s Granite Belt.

At its height, snowfalls of 15 centimetres and wind damage cut roads and rail access to the upper Blue Mountains for more than six hours.

In the Blue Mountains, 300 cars were stranded by the mountain road closures.

See video: Spring snow blankets parts of NSW

But the SES’s Jennifer Finlay says most of the 550 calls for help came from further to the south.

“The Illawarra south coast got hit pretty hard with lots of trees down a bit of roof damage, fortunately nothing too severe,” she said.

Endeavour Energy reconnected more than 2,000 properties to power on Friday afternoon, but hundreds of outlying properties between Mount Victoria and Medlow Bath and in the Megalong Valley will not get power back until Saturday.

With temperatures predicted to get down to 3 degrees Celsius overnight, the company has urged people in areas where the power is out to check on neighbours who live alone.

Students stranded

Snow has also fallen in Victoria, with a group of 11 students and three teachers from Mooroolbark Secondary College stranded near Licola in the state’s east on
Thursday night.

The group was hiking in snow storms yesterday when the students developed hypothermia.

Three students and two teachers were transported out this morning and the remaining are hiking out, with Ambulance Victoria expecting them to be on their way back to Melbourne on Friday afternoon.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-12/snow-falling-across-eastern-australia/4308904

Thanks to Laurel for this link