Coastal Waters Division

To minimise the risk that can be posed by the weather, the Australian Bureau Of Meteorology issues specially recorded telephone forecasts for boating which is updated every few hours. The Adelaide number to call is 11541, and is a usefull means of obtaining initial forecasts for the day.

The Bureau's boating forecasts are given for particulat areas of Sth Australia's waters (Gulf, South Central Coast, etc) and include the expected mean wind direction and speed, and the state of the sea. Small craft warnings are issued whenever mean winds exceeding 25 knots are expected, and gale and storm warnings are issued for winds over 33 knots.

It is also worth noting that the estimated wind speed given in a forecast is for the average wind speed over a 10 minute period, and wind gusts lasting only a few seconds often reach double the forecast estimate. For example, when the forecast wind speed is given as 15 knots, gusts can reach 25 knots or more and these conditions can be hazardous to small boats.