Australia Weather News

Strong winds have whipped across Tasmania, causing moments of chaos at a key Hobart pier, a busy car park and for a popular ferry service.

Wind gusts of about 90 kilometres per hour were measured in Hobart on Sunday afternoon, with the conditions set to continue into the week.

On Monday morning, a crane had to be used to secure part of the Brooke Street Pier on Hobart's waterfront after it came loose due to a strong gust of wind.

The pier — where visitors board the ferry to the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) — was closed for about an hour and tourists were diverted onto other boats.

People at the scene were told by those responding to the incident that the pier was "holding on by a thread".

In a statement, a MONA spokesperson said the issue caused slight delays to the museum's ferry service.

"Scheduled maintenance taking place between sailings got impacted by a gust of wind — the team had it resolved within an hour," the spokesperson said.

"Customers have been very understanding."

Shade cloth damages cars, ferry suspended

On Sunday afternoon, a shade cloth over a car park on Hobart's eastern shore collapsed after becoming loose in windy conditions, landing on multiple vehicles.

Tasmania Police said about eight vehicles at the Glebe Hill shopping centre were hit by the cloth, with some of them receiving minor damage.

Video of the scene shows the shade sail flapping wildly in the wind, occasionally slamming down on the cars below.

The same afternoon, Sealink's ferry service to Bruny Island was suspended, due to the dangerous conditions being created by high winds.

In a statement, independent MP David O'Bryne said the wind "played havoc" with the ferry service, with the suspension causing extended wait times for vehicles looking to board.

Sealink said the ferry service resumed within about an hour of the initial suspension.

Strong winds to continue this week

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a marine wind warning for Monday, with gale strength winds for the lower east coast, south-east coast and south-west coast.

A similar warning is also forecast for Tuesday.

The BOM's Michael Conway said the windy conditions first began on Sunday, with a "blustery front" funnelling down the River Derwent.

Wind gusts of up to 94kph were recorded in Hobart, while Scotts Peak and Maatsuyker Island both had gusts of 139kph.

Mr Conway said the conditions on Monday had eased somewhat — with conditions set to continue through the working week.

"Every day is going to be a little blustery, especially strong on Tuesday evening and into Friday as well when cold fronts come through," he said.

The meteorologist said the strong winds were the result of cold air from Antarctica colliding with the warm air from Australia's mainland during spring.

"That causes a lot of energy and the difference in temperature causes the wind to be quite strong at times," Mr Conway said.