Wild winds, huge swell and thunderstorms: SA warned to brace for extreme weather chaos

Wild weather is heading for SA, with extreme winds, monster swells and storms expected to lash the state from Sunday. But there could be some good news afterwards.

Dasha Havrilenko and Antimo Iannella

3 min read

May 24, 2025 - 8:19PM

South Aussies have been warned to brace for wild weather – including lightning – this weekend. Picture: Facebook/ Shaz Agio

South Australia is facing its worst weather since last winter, with wind gusts of more than 100km/h, intense thunderstorms and possible record-breaking waves on the way.

The state government has activated a Tier 2 emergency Code Blue warning to deal with the expected wild conditions, and additional services are available for rough sleepers between 9am Saturday and 11am Monday in various parts of SA.

Metrologist from the Bureau of Meteorology, Daniel Sherwin-Simpson, said the extreme weather will start to arrive late on Sunday evening and continue all Monday.

He said the damaging winds “could exceed 100km/h” and will hit the southern and central parts of the state, as well as the Eyre and Yorke Peninsula.

“We haven’t seen a cold front this strong since last winter … with these punchy, widespread wind gusts,” Mr Sherwin-Simpson said.

The strong winds are expected to raise ocean swells by several meters, with record-breaking waves of up to 9m tipped off the coast of Kangaroo Island, while high tides are also predicted around the coast.

Heavy rain of up to 30mm is also forecast on Monday for the southern coast and Mount Lofty Ranges, and another 15mm in the southern agricultural area.

Human Services Minister Nat Cook said a Code Blue was declared in nearly every region to ensure people were supported amid the predicted severe rain and storms.

“Code Blue responses provide vital protection for our most vulnerable, ensuring they remain safe, warm, and dry during extreme weather conditions,” she said.

Extreme winds and wet weather to hit the state this weekend. Picture: Emma Brasier

On Friday, senior meteorologist from the Bureau of Meteorology Hannah Marsh warned the wild weather was developing on the back of one of SA’s direst starts to a year – and could lead to uprooted trees and branches.

“In the last 15 months we’ve seen severe rainfall deficiencies across South Australia’s agricultural area … in Adelaide we’ve seen the driest start to the year since records began in 1939 and we’ve only seen 30.8mm recorded so far this year.”

She warned dry conditions mean trees may be suffering from a lack of moisture – which made them much more susceptible of being uprooted or dropping branches in the face of strong winds.

SES warns strong winds might cause debris to fly through the air. Picture: Supplied.

But there might be a silver lining to the weather chaos.

The colder weather and high winds could help reduce South Australia’s algae bloom crisis which has hit our marine environment.

Environment Minister Susan Close said the extreme conditions could help break up the toxic algal bloom.

“What the scientists tell us is the colder it gets and the more winds there are, the greater the chance this thing will go away so that’s what we’re looking forward to,” she said.

“The colder it is the better because this has been caused by … climate change but specifically by marine heatwave we’ve been experiencing these last few months.

“Will this weekend be enough? I hope so.”

Meanwhile, the State Emergency Service has also issued a recommendation for people to prepare their properties by clearing their gutters, moving their cars into garages, and ensuring there are no items in their yards that could go flying.

The State Duty Officer Craig Brassington said he encourages people to “undertake some simple, proactive steps” as they might “contribute to minimising potential storm damage to homes and properties”