A Stormy Season Down Under

Vehicles stranded on road west of Sydney, Australia

Both Australia and New Zealand are still dealing with winter weather well into their spring. This past weekend a strong spring storm brought heavy snow to parts of Australia and heavy rain and snow to New Zealand's South Island.  The heavy snow near Sydney stranded more than 300 motorists and knocked out power to 2500 homes.

Four inches of snow and almost six inches of rain in 24 hours in South Island stranded travelers and caused flooding.  The storm, which came in from the Tasman Sea, caused high winds and power outages in Auckland and triggered a massive landslide that sent huge boulders crashing down on roads.

Surface weather map for 5:00 p.m. Australian EDT October 12, 2012.

If you are interested in learning more about the weather down under, check out the following web sites:

Australian Meteorological Bureau

Meteorological Service of New Zealand