Alice Springs hit by wild storm as Australia’s east coast braced for weather whiplash

A severe thunderstorm hit Alice Springs in the Northern Territory on Monday afternoon, uprooting trees and damaging houses and cars.

Video posted to social media shows rain pelting down in squalls and damaging winds sending tree branches flying across backyards.

The storm lifted sheds and trampolines, flooded shops and left thousands without power.

The Bureau of Meteorology said further storms are expected across the region on Tuesday afternoon as a cool change sweeps the eastern seaboard increasing the risk of storms across parts of NSW and Queensland as well.

The cool change has already hit Sydney; while the city sweltered through maximum temperatures of 35 degrees on Monday, this will drop to about 22 degrees on Tuesday, with rain and cloudy weather already hitting the harbour city.

BoM senior meteorologist Sarah Scully warned the weather could get more extreme and unpredictable in parts of NSW and Queensland through the week.

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“There’s a risk of severe thunderstorms in Central Australia… and then the east coast. So the Mid-North coast and Northern Rivers district of NSW, as well [as] the Southeast coast of Queensland,” she told Today.

“These storms could bring damaging wind gusts in excess of 90km/h, large hail, or heavy rainfall that could lead to flash flooding.”

Gloucester on the Mid North Coast of NSW could cop up to 40mm of rain from large thunderstorms, with Taree also expecting similar falls on Tuesday.

Data from the BoM shows 5.2mm of rain has hit Sydney since midnight and the city could receive another 20mm, with rain expected for the rest of the week.

During this period, temperatures will not exceed 22 degrees.

The cool change will also hit southern parts of Australia, including Melbourne.

“It’s going to be pretty cold for Melbourne and Hobart today, 15 degrees maximum for Melbourne, and 13 and very windy for Hobart,” Scully said.

Scully said this type of weather whiplash – quick changes from hot and dry weather to rain and cooler temperatures – was not unusual for this time of the year.

“We are sort of transitioning from the cooler months up to the warmer months of summer, so we’ll definitely be seeing more of these cold fronts and southerly changes pushing through,” she said.

Scully urged people in storm impacted areas to monitor the changing weather conditions and to keep an eye on any emergency alerts released by the BoM.