Damaging winds exceeding 100 kilometres per hour are forecast for western and central parts of South Australia on Monday and Tuesday, with Adelaide and the Mount Lofty Ranges expecting gusts of 90km/h. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning covering multiple districts, including Adelaide, the Mount Lofty Ranges, Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas, Flinders, Mid North, Kangaroo Island, Riverland, the South East, and parts of the West Coast, North East Pastoral, and North West Pastoral districts.
Senior BOM forecaster Michael Efron said some areas, such as the West Coast, Eyre Peninsula, and Yorke Peninsula, could experience wind gusts of 100km/h. A thunderstorm risk was also issued for late Monday morning, with rainfall of 3 to 10 millimetres expected on Monday and 5 to 10 millimetres on Tuesday.
The State Emergency Service advised residents to secure loose items around properties, park vehicles away from trees, and stay indoors away from windows during severe conditions. BOM Meteorologist Angus Hines warned of potential damage to trees and property, hazardous driving conditions, and power outages. “When we have winds of this intensity, trees pushing down onto houses or cars happens all the time,” he said.
Coastal areas face additional risks from large waves and abnormally high tides, particularly during Tuesday afternoon’s high tide. The warning stretches from the Nullarbor coast to the Limestone Coast and into western Victoria. BOM meteorologist Jonathan Fischer noted that peak winds are likely to strike south of Adelaide on Monday night, with rough seas expected through Monday afternoon and evening. He warned of possible damage to coastal infrastructure like jetties and beach erosion.
Emergency Services Minister Rhiannon Pearce urged South Australians to “stay alert” and “avoid unnecessary danger.” As of 8pm Monday, SA Power Networks reported 10 outages affecting nearly 2,000 customers across the state.
