Today show weatherman mocked over TV blunder on 'snow'

Today show weatherman Stevie Jacobs argued the issue at length with his co-host Deborah Knight. Photo / Twitter

Stunning hailstorm photos have fooled a TV weatherman into falsely thinking snow had fallen in a subtropical region of Australia.

Today show weatherman Stevie Jacobs argued the issue at length with his co-host Deborah Knight, who grew up in Coffs Harbour in New South Wales and was certain the snow claims were "rubbish".

Today teased viewers with upcoming images of "snow in Coffs Harbour" this morning, but Knight was immediately dubious.

The fishermen's co-op at the Coffs Harbour Jetty was covered in hail. Photo / news.com.au

"Where is your proof of the snow in Coffs Harbour?" she asked.

"It will be coming," her co-host Jacobs told her. "Sceptic here doesn't believe it."

"That is rubbish," Knight insisted.

"They don't get snow in Coffs Harbour," she continued. "Totally pranked. It's probably some of my relatives doing it actually."

Coffs Harbour is a beachside city about halfway between Brisbane and Sydney, with a subtropical climate and mild winters.

Returning to the conversation later, Knight was still unconvinced. "It doesn't snow in Coffs Harbour," he said.

Jacobs showed her photos taken outside the fishermen's co-op, near the jetty in Coffs Harbour.

"Someone has sent in photos from the fisherman's co-op," Jacobs told Knight. "This is at the end of the jetty," he insisted.

"Is that foam off the surf?" she asked.

"It is not foam off the surf," Jacobs insisted. "To me it looks like a good downpour of snow. Here you can see the live footage of the rain coming in."

A weatherman mistook the icy outlook for snow. Photo / news.com.au

Later, Knight was happy to get a jab in when she and co-host Ben Fordham crossed back to Jacobs, cheekily asking, "Are you peddling any more fake news about snow in Coffs Harbour?"

Knight explained she'd texted her parents, who live in the area, who reported there'd been hail but no snow.

"How am I supposed to argue with Barb, Bob and Deb?" Jacobs asked.

While Jacobs said he "wasn't retracting" his earlier statements about the snow, he was soon rebuked by the Bureau of Meteorology, which politely corrected the claims on Twitter.

An easy mistake to make but this is an accumulation of small hail, not snow.https://t.co/lOhC6cDj97

— Bureau of Meteorology, New South Wales (@BOM_NSW) August 29, 2019

Coffs Harbour did experience a short hailstorm last night, with hail accumulating in some areas.

The State Emergency Service was called to 100 jobs, mainly due to leaking roofs damaged by the wild weather.