Dozens rescued from flood waters and thousands remain without power as BoM warns of wild weather in Melbourne, south-east NSW and Queensland
The first week of 2024 is off to a wild start, with storms continuing to lash Australia’s east coast and a heatwave baking the north of the continent.
Thunderstorms were headed for central Victoria on Wednesday and were forecast to become widespread over the eastern half of the state.
Continue reading...Heavy rain, strong winds and large hailstones reported in parts of state as BoM warns of potential life-threatening flash flooding
More than 40,000 Victorian homes and businesses were without power and some would remain in the dark overnight as wild thunderstorms swept across the state, causing flight delays at Melbourne airport.
A severe thunderstorm warning was issued on Tuesday afternoon for Bendigo, Maryborough, Castlemaine, Kyneton, Ballarat, Bellarine Peninsula and greater Melbourne.
Continue reading...Tyalgum residents hit by devastating flooding in 2022 have stepped up to support each other again after being isolated for nearly two days
Residents of a small town near the New South Wales-Queensland border still grappling with the fallout from major flooding in 2022 have banded together to support each other after the community was again hit by severe weather.
Tyalgum, a Tweed Shire village of about 500 people in north-eastern NSW about 70km from the Gold Coast, was cut off by flood waters for nearly two days over the New Year’s period.
Continue reading...State government says group has specialist skills and appropriate agency is chosen at federal level
The Australian defence force was not deployed after storms hit the Gold Coast because it was determined other agencies would be better suited to the clean-up task, according to the Queensland disaster coordinator.
Acting deputy commissioner, Shane Chelepy, told media on Monday afternoon that the state response to continued thunderstorms and flooding has been bolstered by 50 cleanup workers from a veteran-led not-for-profit, Disaster Relief Australia.
Continue reading...BoM forecasts heavy rain for south-east Queensland and northern NSW, while across the far north temperatures will remain in the 40s
Parts of south-east Queensland are being battered by heavy rain in a soggy start to the new year, with dangerous flooding predicted.
Intense falls in some areas could lead to life-threatening flash flooding, the Bureau of Meteorology warned on Monday afternoon.
Continue reading...Kristy Holmes always knew she could use her electric car for ‘good things’, but when storms caused a blackout, it proved life-saving
An electric vehicle owner has used her car’s emergency power system to run her 11-year-old son’s lifesaving dialysis machine and another has ridden to the rescue of his neighbours after devastating storms cut power in south-east Queensland.
When the power went down following storms and flash flooding on Christmas Day, many residents immediately felt the consequences: electric gates did not work, septic tanks began to fill, air conditioners could not run and fridges began to warm as a heatwave followed.
Continue reading...Displays expected in cities across country to ring in 2024 while predicted wild weather on east coast could disrupt revelry
Heat and hail have been forecast across parts of the country as hundreds queue outside the Sydney Opera House to secure front-row seats for the New Year’s Eve fireworks.
Lines in Circular Quay began to form at 8am on Sunday as people sought to stake their claim to a view. By 11.24am, organisers announced the Sydney Opera House vantage point is full and advised members of the public to seek alternative options.
Continue reading...Several waves of thunderstorms batter state as thousands in region remain without power
Two people have been hospitalised after their vehicles were struck by lightning in two separate incidents in Queensland on Saturday, as severe thunderstorms return to the south-east of the state.
Queensland Ambulance said one man was transported to Caboolture hospital – between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast – in a stable condition after the vehicle he was travelling in was reportedly struck by lightening while on the Bruce highway at about 9.20am.
Continue reading...Conditions 8C to 12C above average across large parts of Australia’s north, with little reprieve for storm-ravaged areas
A severe heatwave is expected to affect parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia heading into the new year.
Large swathes have been put on alert, with conditions 8C to 12C above average.
Continue reading...Many homes in Jimboomba are still without power. Now temperatures are nearing 40C, and more storms are forecast
Inside an unassuming hall in Jimboomba, north-west of Queensland’s Gold Coast, Sarah Weir is offering a reprieve from the heat, cool drinks and food, wifi, and even her shoulder to cry on.
“There’s been some tears,” she says.
Continue reading...Surging consumption comes despite ‘very sleepy period’ for electricity use, energy expert says
Queensland’s electricity supplies are expected to be strained for a second day in a row as the heatwave roasting much of northern Australia lifts power demand to near-record levels.
The mercury exceeded its forecast maximum for Brisbane of 37C by early afternoon and was recently at 38.3.5C, or eight degrees above the December average, Bureau of Meteorology data showed.
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Tasmanian yacht Alive is in the box seat to take out Sydney to Hobart yacht race’s overall honours, with skipper Duncan Hine confident the 66-footer has a winning time on the board.
Hine and his crew finished the 628-nautical-mile blue water classic yesterday afternoon as clubhouse leaders on handicap time.
It’s a waiting game. We’re looking good, though. I believe we could do it again, but the reality may be different. Now we wait with bated breath to see if anyone can beat our time.
Continue reading...Tents and caravans were swept away during 30-minute deluge that inundated Buchan campsite
Holidaymakers have described the terrifying moment a wall of water inundated a popular camping site in regional Victoria on Boxing Day, leaving two people dead and millions of dollars worth of damage.
Those who were at the Buchan Caves Campground, about 350km east of Melbourne, said the usually sedate Spring Creek that flows through the reserve became engorged without warning on Tuesday, before sweeping away tents and caravans.
Continue reading...Some households could go without electricity into the new year as state endures high temperatures following extreme weather
Areas of Queensland affected by “unprecedented” storms now face the prospect of days without electricity amid extreme heat.
Storms and flash flooding across south-east Queensland have claimed the lives of seven people since Christmas but households have now been warned to prepare for a heatwave.
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Cricket begins
Day two of the Boxing Day Test between Australia and Pakistan has just started in Melbourne. You can follow the latest on our separate live blog here:
Continue reading...Two campers in Victoria and three friends on a fishing trip in Queensland among 10 lives lost as storms ravaged eastern Australia
The body of a man has been discovered in flood-affected regional Victoria, taking the death toll from storms that wreaked havoc on eastern Australia over the Christmas period to 10.
Victoria police received information on Wednesday that it was believed a man was camping with a woman who was located deceased following flash flooding in Buchan in East Gippsland on 26 December.
Continue reading...Nine-year-old girl and three men confirmed dead after boat capsized in south-east Queensland among death toll
The death toll from Australia’s Christmas storms has risen to nine, as the Gold Coast mayor warns his city is “not out of the woods”.
The people confirmed dead include a nine-year-old girl whose body was found after she was feared lost in stormwater drains in Brisbane.
Continue reading...Two women reported missing in flood waters in Gympie as Bureau of Meteorology warns of further thunderstorms on Boxing Day night
Severe thunderstorms and heavy rain are expected to continue to batter the east coast until at least Wednesday evening, as thousands of households remained without power on Boxing Day.
Severe weather warnings have been issued for large parts of the New South Wales, Victorian and Queensland coasts, covering metropolitan areas as well as some regional areas.
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What’s causing the storms?
Senior meteorologist Angus Hines from the Bureau of Meteorology just spoke to ABC News about the severe thunderstorms hitting the east coast.
[It is] primarily driven by some warm humid air in the low levels of the atmosphere, which is partly contributed to by a ton of warm ocean temperatures off the east coast of Australia providing a lot of that warmth and humidity into the atmosphere.
We also have a big low pressure system higher up which just provides that extra energy and support which allows these thunderstorms do develop and grow, and as you say, they have been causing extensive disruptive weather over the last few days.
Continue reading...The 78th edition of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race has begun under dark skies that threatened to be much worse as the scheduled start time approached.
Thunderstorms, heavy rain and strong winds blanketed Sydney Harbour an hour before the 1pm AEDT start but cleared as the 103-vessel fleet jostled for position.
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