The City of Hobart say conditions on kunanyi/Mount Wellington this morning are “suited to only the experienced, well prepared user.”
With a current ‘feels like’ temperature of -16.5c and gusts of around 74km/h, the conditions are not for the ill-prepared.
Council crews, who braved the elements to inspect the mountain this morning said they “knew it would be very cold,” but were met with ‘even colder temperatures than anticipated’.
Currently closed to the summit at The Springs, crews are working to clear snow and ice from the road.
“kunanyi/Mt Wellington might seem close enough to be a suburb of Hobart, but it’s not, it’s an alpine environment and can be treacherous if the weather turns nasty with white-outs and sub zero temperatures,” the City said.
“If not well prepared, the mountain weather can be deadly.”
“For every 100 metres you ascend the temperature typically falls a degree.”
The summit, 600 meters higher than The Springs, is likely to be 6°C colder and windy conditions can make it feel even chillier.
Walkers must always be ready to turn back, considering that low clouds can reduce visibility to a few meters and the presence of snow and ice can make tracks extremely slippery.
The warning follows a rescue on Sunday night that saw five tourists saved on the summit of Mount Roland after they ventured up “ill-prepared”.
Western Search and Rescue boss Inspector Steve Jones said the group “veered off-course, losing the track on the way down.”
