Temperatures dipped below freezing in parts of the Illawarra on Saturday morning, making for an icy start to the weekend and delivering one suburb its coldest night since last winter.
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The mercury dropped to a low of -1.1 degrees at Albion Park at 6.59am – about eight degrees below the June average minimum. At the time, the temperature felt more like -4.2 degrees, thanks to light west-southwesterly winds.
The minimum fell short of the record for lowest June minimum on record at Albion Park (-2 degrees in 2006) but was the suburb’s coldest night since last July, when a low of -0.5 was felt (the only sub-zero temperature recorded last winter).
Inland areas certainly felt the biggest chill, with coastal Wollongong suburbs more than 10 degrees warmer than areas away from the ocean on Saturday morning.
It was also a warmer in the water, with an ocean temperature of about 18 degrees. However, beachgoers were met with rather chilly conditions as they removed themselves from the surf or the region’s sea pools.
The overnight low recorded by the Bureau of Meteorology at Bellambi was 8.9 degrees at 2.36am. The coastal suburb had its coldest night since last winter a week ago, when the mercury dropped to 7.7 degrees on the morning of June 17.
At 7.50am on Saturday, there was a big difference in temperatures across Wollongong – it was just 1 degree in Albion Park and 14 degrees at Bellambi.
Elsewhere, the temperature in Moss Vale dipped to -1.2 degrees about 3.30am and Nowra’s minimum was 1.8 degrees.
Looking ahead, Wollongong can expect a mostly sunny Saturday, with light winds. Maximums of 18 degrees are forecast in the city and at Albion Park.
Sunday will a few degrees cooler, with tops of 15 degrees in the city and 16 in the west.
The middle of next week looks wet, with a high chance of showers in Wollongong on Wednesday and Thursday.
Early forecasts from the bureau suggest rainfall of up to 15 millimetres in the city on Wednesday, with further falls of up to 20mm on Thursday.
Similar totals are expected in areas away from the coast.
Andrew Pearson
Andrew grew up in the western Riverina town of Hay and has strong ties to the region. He is a former DA journo who has a passion for breaking news and has covered everything from council and politics to crime and court.
Andrew grew up in the western Riverina town of Hay and has strong ties to the region. He is a former DA journo who has a passion for breaking news and has covered everything from council and politics to crime and court.
