In Pictures: Floods and snow hit Australia

Parts of eastern Australia have been hit by a nasty blast of wintry weather as violent winds brought torrential rain across the region. Worst hit have been Victoria and southern New South Wales.

The high winds, with gusts in excess of 100kph at times, toppled trees and brought down power lines. Almost 80,000 homes were without electricity for much of Tuesday.

The wild weather prompted over 4,000 calls to the emergency serves for help. A forecaster from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology said that systems like this affect Victoria only once every few years. “We’re in for a windy week, so its not over yet, although we have seen the most intense winds.”

It is undoubtedly good news for the ski resorts. Thredbo recorded around 50cm of snow, with another 100cm possible in the coming days. After what has been a mild start to winter, this has come as something of a shock to the system.