By Caroline Schelle and Roy Ward
Emergency services have rescued more than 13 people at Mount Hotham after heavy snowfall blanketed ski fields and closed roads during a wintry blast that pushed down temperatures in Melbourne and led to heavy rain around the state.
The alpine region had the heaviest ski season opening-weekend snowfall in years with Falls Creek (37 centimetres), Mount Buller (26 centimetres) and Mount Hotham (32 centimetres) all recording big falls in the 24 hours to Sunday morning, while rain and cold weather lashed the state, including parts of the drought-stricken Wimmera-Mallee region.
In the Alps, the mercury plummeted to minus 3.5 degrees at Mount Hotham, while Falls Creek dropped to minus 3 degrees and Mount Baw Baw hit minus 2 degrees. The highest temperature recorded in Melbourne on Sunday was in Scoresby at 12.6 degrees at 2.06pm, while Cerberus on the Mornington Peninsula recorded a frosty 3.7 degrees at 6.29am.
Police, along with SES units for Bright and Falls Creek and other agencies, were in action at Blue Rag Range Track near Hotham Heights after 50 centimetres of snow fell during the weekend, catching out some visitors who weren’t aware how much snow was falling or weren’t properly equipped with items like snow chains to allow them to handle the conditions.
Police said a man in his 40s was treated for minor injuries after his vehicle rolled, and another 12 people were rescued. SES units are concerned as many as 20 people could be stuck as they continue to work in the area.
Authorities have closed the road that leads to Hotham Heights, Dargo Highway Plains Road, for the rest of the long weekend and warned people to stay away until further notice as rescue workers use snowmobiles to search for any other trapped vehicles along the mountain.
After the flurry of rescues over the weekend, police urged snow-goers to keep up with weather forecasts and follow safety orders as the cold weather is forecast to continue for the coming days.
“Snow-goers are warned to obey road closure signs to allow emergency services to continue their search of the area to identify if there are any further people who require rescue,” police said in a statement.
“Police are urging people to heed weather warnings, monitor conditions and ensure their vehicles are appropriately equipped for the conditions.”
SES Bright and Falls Creek units helped police with the rescue of people stuck in vehicles near Hotham Heights.Credit: Facebook
Police have warned that a failure to carry chains can attract a $395 fine and a failure to fit them a $988 fine.
Amid the warnings, Falls Creek is preparing for more visitors and is looking to open more terrain in the coming days and weeks after the bumper start to the snow season.
“With an average snow depth of 55 centimetres so far, this is the best snowfall on opening weekend at Falls Creek in recent memory,” Falls Creek head of visitor experience David Leathem said.
Senior meteorologist Michael Efron warned Melburnians to brace for more chilly conditions this week.
Efron said the wet conditions were forecast to continue into Monday, and rainfall of between 10 and 25 millimetres was expected in parts of the south and east of the state.
“We are seeing some of those drought-affected areas receive some really useful rainfall, but not all of them have seen that,” he said.
Areas in the state’s north-west – such as the drought-stricken Mallee region – had only modest rain on Sunday. Swan Hill recorded 2 millimetres and Kerang 3 millimetres as of 5pm.
Odin Cockerill and Arlie Anson enjoy the wet weather at Gorae West, near Portland, in the state’s south-west.Credit: Nicole Cleary
Falls were heavier in the south-west district – Mortlake and Mount William both had more than 19 millimetres of rain, while in the central district, Aireys Inlet recorded 19 millimetres and Ballarat 20.4 millimetres.
A flood watch warning issued on Saturday night for the Yarra River catchment was downgraded by the bureau on Sunday. There were 30 millimetres of rain recorded across the Yarra River catchment in the 24 hours to 9am on Sunday morning.
“Further moderate rainfall is forecast across the catchment for the remainder of Sunday and into Monday, but this is no longer expected to cause flooding,” the advice on the weather bureau’s website read.
The wet weather is set to continue on the King’s Birthday holiday for much of the state’s south.
Falls from five to 15 millimetres are expected from Monday, with Gippsland forecast to receive high total rainfall.
The cold and wet conditions follow a warm autumn.
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