Queensland Soaks Up 450mm Before Storms Move East

Some areas of the Sunshine Coast hinterlands and Caboolture recorded 450mm of rain over a seven day period. This total arrived after a week of extreme rainfall that pushed several Queensland regions to more than double their average October precipitation.

The weather pattern has persisted for seven to 10 days, drawing in large amounts of moisture across Queensland and northern New South Wales. Senior Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist David Crock noted the conditions were more typical of summer months like January or February. The heaviest downpour hit on Thursday. Torrential rain stretched from Caboolture south to the Border Ranges. Some locations in that corridor received well over 200mm in a single day.

The intense rain triggered flash flooding and hundreds of calls for help to the State Emergency Service. Several schools closed on Friday. The Queensland fire department logged more than 16 swift water rescues. In one incident, crews used a raft to reach an elderly man clinging to the roof of his vehicle at Caboolture.

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued warnings for severe thunderstorms, heavy rain, and flash flooding in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, and Tasmania. Nine flood warnings remain active in southern Queensland. Crock said severe thunderstorms and heavy rain are expected at several locations in central and eastern Queensland on Saturday. These include Rockhampton, Gladstone, Bundaberg, the Sunshine Coast hinterlands, and Roma.

Severe storms may also impact parts of Victoria, including Melbourne's eastern suburbs, as well as central and eastern South Australia. In Tasmania, heavy rain is forecast to develop overnight into Sunday morning. A cold front is due to cross New South Wales on Sunday. This system will bring severe thunderstorms to the west of the state, north eastern Victoria, Sydney, and Brisbane.

Crock stated that the threat of thunderstorms would extend right across eastern Australia. Severe storms are likely through a wide part of inland eastern Australia. The forecast indicates that the storm activity will continue to shift eastward as the week progresses.

The Bureau of Meteorology has placed these warnings in effect for the weekend. The agency is monitoring the movement of the cold front across New South Wales. The system is expected to deliver significant precipitation to the eastern states following the heavy rainfall already recorded in the north.