Tom Saunders

Scorching end to summer expected for south-east as heavy rain falls on east and west coasts. 

There has been a marked shift in the weather pattern across eastern Australia during the past 48 hours. The result will be a week-long spell of showers and thunderstorms from tropical Queensland to eastern Victoria.

Up to 100 millimetres of rain has fallen over a wide range of northern New South Wales reducing the number of fires that have been burning for days.

Residents of south-east NSW were treated to a surprise mid-spring snowfall on Monday, while in the north searing heat sent temperatures to their highest October levels in more than a decade.

Brisbane teams are seemingly bringing the Queensland heat south for the football finals this weekend as another burst of unseasonable temperatures engulfs Australia.

The Bureau of Meteorology formally declares an El Niño weather event, months after the World Meteorological Organization announced the same.

A glance at the Bureau of Meteorology’s rain forecast would suggest almost no chance of a wet June, so why are the seasonal and weather forecasts contradicting each other?

Wet weather will dampen long weekend plans as thunderstorms hit Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra over Easter.

Forecast models indicate the low-pressure system could pass through the NSW coast, bringing with it heavy rain tomorrow and Wednesday.

It has been a tumultuous five years from drought to plagues to floods, but farmers across southern Australia are about to catch a lucky break — the autumn break to be precise.