New South Wales is next in line for the mega-storm that caused havoc across South Australia on Wednesday and plunged the entire state into blackout.
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The "vigorous" low pressure system and associated cold front will move through western and central NSW and northern Victoria on Thursday, bringing damaging winds, rain and isolated thunderstorms, the Bureau or Meteorology said on Thursday morning.
Sydney and the rest of NSW coastline are not out of the woods either, with meteorologists predicting thunderstorm warnings to be issued on Thursday afternoon.
Although the severe thunderstorms have left South Australia, the tail-end of the low pressure system will continue to hit the state with heavy winds until Saturday, mostly to areas north and west of Adelaide.
About 100,000 homes in the north of the state remained without power on Thursday morning.
Political recriminations have begun with Federal Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg and other MPs questioning the state's increasing reliance on renewable energy.
South Australia was hit by more than 100,000 lightening strikes on Wednesday which knocked over 22 transmission poles.
It's possible that a tornado formed around Blyth in mid-north SA, said Rob Sharpe, meteorologist with Weatherzone.
"Evidence suggests there could have been a tornado because of the level of the destructive winds there," he said. "The thunder storms yesterday were incredibly powerful."
Bureau meteorologist Andrea Peace said the heaviest rain falls will hit the northeast ranges of Victoria near Mildura, parts of the north-east around Wangaratta and the south-west slopes of NSW including Dubbo, Forbes, Parkes, Wagga Wagga and Cootamundra.
"The heaviest falls [are] expected in quite a short period of six to 12 hours [on Thursday]," she said.
The rain is likely to exacerbate floods that have already crippled NSW towns including Forbes, where residents are furious that their main access road could be cut-off for up to six weeks.
"We still have 22 flood warnings through the very saturated parts of eastern Australia, and we may see some renewed and prolonged river rises there with this additional rainfall," said Ms Peace.
She said gusty northerly winds will move across the east, becoming gale-force in high Alpine areas.
The wild weather is expected to last into Saturday as strong winds continue "feeding or wrapping around the low" as it moves south-east.
In NSW, the Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for people in the Central Tablelands, South West Slopes, Riverina, Lower Western, Northern Tablelands and parts of the Mid North Coast, Hunter, Southern Tablelands, Central West Slopes and Plains, Upper Western, Snowy Mountains and Australian Capital Territory Forecast Districts.
Conditions on Thursday are likely to include:
- Damaging winds of up to 110 km/hr, particularly around the Alpine peaks on Thursday morning.
- Damaging winds of up to 90 km/hr in far west NSW and progressing through the central inland and along the ranges by Thursday afternoon.
- Heavy rain on Thursday morning across already-saturdated catchments in the central west and south west slopes.
A warning has also been issued to sheep graziers across central and western NSW as lambs and sheep exposed to the cold temperatures, rain and showers may die.
Weatherzone is owned by Fairfax Media.
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