Multi-state storm system brings hail, strong winds and flood warnings to eastern Australia
The Bureau of Meteorology warned of severe thunderstorms, flash flooding and power outages across southern Queensland, western New South Wales, the ACT and eastern Victoria on Sunday, with additional storm risk expected on Monday.
The Bureau of Meteorology issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Sydney, greater Wollongong and surrounding regions on Sunday afternoon, as a broad line of storms moved across western New South Wales and flood warnings were activated in southern Queensland.
Meteorologists said the system, described as "unusually large," could produce hail, damaging winds, flash flooding and power outages across a wide area that includes southern Queensland, western New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory and eastern Victoria.
Wind gusts reached up to 100 km/h in central western New South Wales around midday. > "This is a multi-state system of storms and it’s unusually large," said bureau meteorologist David Crock.
Crock explained that a high-pressure ridge over the Tasman Sea had blocked weather fronts for about ten days, directing storms and rain into southern Queensland. He added that a cooler front moving from the west was drawing tropical moisture northward, intensifying storm activity from the Snowy Mountains to the Queensland border.
Storms were expected to persist into Sunday evening and Monday in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland as the cold front advanced. > "[Monday] is the last big bang of this system and that’s going to be a great relief for those people in south-east Queensland," Crock said.
Eight flood warnings remained in place for southern Queensland, with the Mary River forecast to reach major flood levels near Tiaro. Recent October rainfall in the region has been several times above the monthly average, following a dry September.
Coastal showers are forecast for Victoria and Tasmania, with snow predicted above 800 metres in Tasmania. In Western Australia, cooler weather and possible showers are expected in the southwest.
The bureau’s long-range outlook for November to January indicates above-average rainfall for most of the country, except the far north and much of Tasmania, and warmer than usual temperatures, particularly at night, for the southern half of the continent.