Arctic blast brings snow, rain and hail in 'chilly' last week of winter

Despite spring being just around the corner, a "big, chilly blast" is bringing huge falls of snow and rain to several Aussie states this week.

On Monday, the arctic blast swept in from South Australia into Victoria and Tasmania, before moving into southern NSW on Tuesday.

According to the Bureau of Meteorology, temperatures will generally be around 2 to 5 degrees below average for the next few days but inland Australia could be as low as 8-10 degrees below average.

Snow, hail and storms

ABC weather presenter Nate Byrne said snow levels in Tasmania were dropping down to 300 metres this morning, with snowfalls seen around Hobart and there could also be hail and snow in the Central Tablelands of NSW this afternoon.

Residents in the southern NSW towns of Jindabyne and Berridale woke to see their towns covered in snow on Tuesday.

The towns are popular bases for people heading to the snowfields but aren't often covered in the white stuff themselves. It was the biggest snowfall away from the mountains this year, with up to 20cm of snow covering the ground.

Weatherzone said snow was expected to fall as low as 500 metres in Victoria on Tuesday morning and around 700 metres in southern NSW and the ACT late on Tuesday. It would fall at levels of 900 to 1000 metres in central and northern NSW late on Tuesday.

Storms for Sydney and surrounds

Storms brought heavy rain to Sydney and surrounding areas on Tuesday afternoon with the biggest falls to be around the Hunter and Mid North Coast in NSW. Dust storms may also form in parts of South Australia and northwest NSW.

"It's a wintery week ahead for the southeast because the cold will linger," Mr Byrne said of the cold weather hitting the southern parts of the country.

"A low is forming off the coast and that will help reinforce those falls for parts of NSW."

• Hikers rescued after two nights stuck in Snowy Mountains blizzard

• Weather: Australia set to shiver as triple whammy cold fronts arrive

• 'Snow' hits Byron Bay in rare weather event

Cool days for Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne

The ACT is also experiencing the cold due to the arctic blast, with minimum temperatures in Canberra predicted to drop to -4C on Wednesday.

Canberra dropped almost five degrees in less than an hour as the cold front passed through on Tuesday morning with a minimum of 4.5 degrees on Tuesday morning and steady rain.

Cool days are expected in Sydney over the next few days with temperatures to not climb above 19 until Sunday.

Melbourne reached just 13 on Tuesday with just 13 and 14 maximums forecast for Wednesday and Thursday respectively.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.