• Have you anything to add to these stories? Or even a new story? Contact me at wbc@ozemail.com.au
• Times stated are the clock time in force in the relevant state or territory
• Stories, including those in the archives, are as new and corrected information becomes available, with updates underlined

Acknowledgments: Australian Weather News gratefully acknowledges the Bureau of Meteorology as the collector and main source of meteorological data in Australia, along with the thousands of observers who record the weather and rainfall daily. Data from automatic rainfall, river and wave recorders in NSW is reproduced with kind permission of Manly Hydraulics Laboratory. I also thank Don White, Michael Bath, Jimmy Deguara, Jacob Aufdemkampe , and Michael Thompson who routinely provide me with much appreciated information.

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Unseasonal rain in WA's north -- again.

For the third time in a month, and the fifth time this winter, unusually heavy rain for this season has occurred in WA's Pilbara and Gascoyne regions. Falls of 25 to 60mm covered most of the area apart from a few north coastal areas, and extended inland almost to the Northern Territory border. A moist northwesterly airstream feeding into a surface trough coupled with substantial middle atmosphere uplift were again responsible for the rain, arriving on the northwest coast late yesterday morning and extending to eastern desert areas late today. Carnarvon AP received 58mm between 9am and 3pm yesterday, with 36mm falling in the hour to 3pm, though no thunder was reported. Other heavy short-duration falls were 73mm in 9 hours to midnight this morning at Mt Phillip, 33mm between midnight and 6am at Wittenoom, and 20mm in one hour to 9pm at the desert mining community of Telfer. Paraburdoo recorded 62mm in steady rain between 9pm last night and 3pm this afternoon. Top falls in the 24 hours to 9am this morning were 100mm at Kooline Station, about 200km southeast of Onslow, and a dozen reports above 50mm in the range country southwest of Kooline and north of Gascoyne Junction.

This area of Australia normally receives between about 20 and 60mm for the two months of July and August, but some parts have now recorded over 100mm with August just begun.

Cold snap spreads north

The cold weather which has gripped southeastern Australia for the past few days maintained its grip on Queensland and the Northern Territory today. Maximum temperatures across most of inland Queensland, southern Northern Territory and northern South Australia were 6 to 10 degrees below the August norm. Kulgera, close to the SA/NT border, reported a maximum of only 12.6, 9.3 below average, whilst in NSW Collarenebri with 11.8 and Mungindi with 12.0 were nearly 9 below average. Minimum temperatures were 6 to 9 below in central Queensland and parts of northern Queensland and central Northern Territory: Springsure's -2.0 was 9 below in the Queensland Central Highlands, whilst close to the Gulf of Carpentaria, Croydon recorded a minimum of 7.0, 8.7 below average and close to its record August low of 5.5 in 32 years of record.

NSW/Qld Flood report

In New South Wales, the flood peak in the Lachlan is near Forbes with minor flooding in some areas. The Macintyre peak was downstream from Goondiwindi with major flooding. The Macquarie peak was below Warren, which peaked at 8.60 around 1pm yesterday, and minor flooding continues. The Namoi peaked at Wee Waa with 7.16m last night with moderate to major flooding.

In Queensland, the flood peak on the Moonie is between Nindigully and Fenton, causing minor flooding. On the Paroo, the peak is between Eulo and Hungerford causing moderate flooding. The peak in the Bulloo was between Autumnvale and Thargomindah causing minor to moderate flooding.

At this stage, the hydrology section of the Bureau of Meteorology is expecting the combined floodwaters in the upper Darling basin to result in a major flood peak moving slowly down the Barwon/Darling Rivers through August, September and October. On the Barwon River upstream from Walgett, where the Namoi River enters, the Bureau expects flood peaks slightly under the July 1984 flood. Below Walgett, with high inflows from two floodcrests in the Namoi, the Bureau expects flooding on a scale slightly higher than the September 1985 flood.

Unusually cold at Macquarie Island

Tasmania's southern outpost of Macquarie Island, some 1,500km SSE of Hobart, is not renowned for a tropical climate, but even in winter, the temperature normally hovers between about zero and 5C. Its coldest July and August minimum temperatures in 48 years of record have been -8.9C. The temperature today ranged between -5.0 and -8.0 with a fresh to strong south to southwesterly wind and frequent light snow showers.

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NSW/Qld Flood Report.

With flood peaks now in or approaching the plains, they are slow moving and there is little change to report from yesterday. In Wee Waa on the Namoi River, high-wheeled vehicles are now able to get into the town, which has been isolated by road for two weeks. All roads around the town are still under water, but some will be open to 4WD vehicles later in the week after roads have been inspected for damage. Much of the farming land between Narrabri and Walgett in northern NSW is under water due to flooding on the Namoi and Castlereagh Rivers. Several towns, including Pilliga, Burren Junction and Carinda remain isolated, along with hundreds of properties, and are being resupplied by airdrops. One estimate put the acreage of winter legume and cereal crop written off by the flood at 150,000.

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NSW/Qld Flood update.

The second flood crest moving down the Namoi peaked at Bugilbone at 6.55 metres this morning with major flooding. The Macintyre River peaked at Riverview about 10am yesterday at 5.30m with major flooding. The flows from both rivers are lower than expected, resulting in forecast flood levels downstream in the Barwon/Darling system being revised downwards today.

Elsewhere, the Lachlan at Canowindra peaked at 4.92m yesterday, below minor flood level, and the Warrego at Fords Bridge Bywash has been steady on 2.47m for three days and is probably around its peak.

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Rain causes minor flooding in northern Tasmania

Continuing rain along the Northern Tiers toay raised river levels in the Meander river basin to minor flood level, with the Meander peaking at 2.1m about 4pm at Meander, and 1.8m about 3am Wednesday at Deloraine.

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More rain for central western NSW and central Qld.

A surface trough combined with upper colder air to produce strong uplift as it moved over central parts of NSW and Queensland late yesterday and today, bringing widespread falls of 25 to 50mm. In the 24 hours to 9am today, the heaviest falls were around a line from Enngonia, through Bourke, Dubbo and Orange to Young in NSW. Warren recorded 62.6mm, Trangie 60, Nevertire 53, Byrock 52.3, Orange AP 52.0 and Kiah near Young 48.2.

• Rain south of Orange was sufficiently heavy to produce moderate flooding in the Belubula River around Canowindra, and Mandagery Creek peaked at 6.65m at Glen Ayr, Toogong, at 5.30am, a moderate level. Two flood peaks are now passing down the Lachlan Valley, the earlier one near Condobolin causing minor flooding.
• Heavy rain fell in the Bell and Little River catchments, which flow into the Macquarie between Wellington and Dubbo. The Little River at Arthurville peaked near 7.65m around 2pm, while the Bell at Newrea was close to peak at 5.93m at 4pm. Moderate flooding was expected tonight in Wellington and Dubbo.
• In the flood-stricken Namoi basin, the rain produced a third flood crest moving downstream, with the first and largest now near Walgett.

In Queensland, Mantuan Downs and Wharton Creek Station near Springsure topped the list with 48.0 and 47.2mm respectively to 9am. Other Queensland falls included Springfield on the Maranoa River 40, Augathella 37.6 and Goomeri 36. Rain of around 15 to 35mm in the Bulloo and Paroo catchments is likely to renew river rises in upstream areas.

During the day, the rainband moved northeast to give general falls of 10 to over 50mm in southeast Queensland and northeastern NSW. In the 24 hours to 9am Thursday, Lytton, west of Brisbane, recorded 69.9mm (for a 48 hour total of 95.9), Cape Byron registered 54.6, Miami on the Gold Coast 51.2, Coolangatta and Ballina AP 46, and North Rockhampton 44 (for a 48 hour total of 65mm). There were some heavy falls in coastal Queensland early and late in the day. Yeppoon, on the coast northeast of Rockhampton, recorded 23mm between 3 and 6am, Brisbane AP 23mm between 3 and 9am, Rockhampton AP 30mm between 9am and 3pm, Toowoomba AP 21mm between 3 and 6pm, and Coolangatta AP 31mm between 3 and 9pm.

No thunderstorms were reported with the rain band, with most locations reporting steady moderate rain falling over 12 to 18 hours.

Blustery cold front sweeps WA

A cold front swept across southern WA during the day bringing gales and strong wind squalls to coastal and nearby areas. Swanbourne, on the coast in Perth's northern suburbs, recorded a peak gust of 44 knots around 8.30am. Other strong gusts were 52 knots at Cape Naturaliste, 55 at Cape Leeuwin, and 46 at Esperance and Rottnest Island.

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Flooding in Sydney as east coast low develops. 16 Aug 98

The trough that gave rain yesterday to inland NSW and Queensland moved offshore last night and intensified. The strongest pressure differences developed by mid-morning around the NSW Central Coast, where strong winds and heavy rain began early in the morning, and got progressively worse through the day. At the same time, a small low pressure system which developed off the Queensland south coast last night also deepened today as it moved south down the NSW coast in the trough. By late tonight, it was located northeast of Sydney with a central pressure of 1000hPa, and was producing strong to gale force winds and heavy rain from Newcastle to the Illawarra.

The weather charts for mid morning showed a very moist tongue of air sweeping from the tropics down the eastern side of the trough, then swinging west and being concentrated onto the NSW Central Coast. At the same time, the upper charts showed intense upmotion in this airmass, especially to the east of Sydney. Sydney's northern suburbs and the Gosford area had their first torrential rain around 1 or 2am, and most of the 24-hour to 9am rainfall occurred between about midnight and 9am. The highest of these totals to hand are: Narrabeen Creek on Narrabeen Lagoon 112, Mona Vale 91, Belrose 82, Frenchs Forest 78.6, Berowra 76 and Narara, just north of Gosford, 74.2. Mona Vale registered 52mm between 1 and 4am and Narrabeen Creek nearly 70mm between 1 and 5am. The Sydney City gauge recorded 60mm for the 24 hours to 9am, and heavy rain also fell in the Eastern Suburbs close to the coast, with 52.8 at Randwick Bowling Club and Rose Bay 52.6.

Steady rain around 5mm per hour, accompanied by strong winds, continued through the morning across coastal parts of Sydney and the southern Central Coast. During the afternoon, winds strengthened, and another period of heavy rain began in this area. Between midday and 4pm, Cromer recorded 73mm, Frenchs Forest 50, Narrabeen Creek 77 and Mona Vale 55mm, while Turramurra recorded 59mm between 1 and 5pm and Little Bay, north of La Perouse, 31mm betwen 1 and 3pm. In the 24 hours to midnight, Cromer recorded 172.5mm, Belrose 120, Frenchs Forest 160, Narrabeen Creek 221, Mona Vale 171, Manly Dam 128, Turramurra 134, Chatswood 105 and Little Bay 104mm. East of Wyong, Norah Head began reporting wind gusts to 45 knots late afternoon, and had sustained winds of 40 knots at 6pm. By mid-afternoon, traffic problems developed in Sydney's southern, eastern and northern beaches suburbs and on the Central Coast as roads closed and local flooding began, mainly due to blocked drains. The SES fielded around 200 calls for assistance, mostly in Sydney's northern suburbs. A fallen tree which blocked the North Shore rail line caused delays of more than an hour.

Other NSW and Queensland flood report

• Flooding on the Macquarie in Dubbo was lower than expected, with a peak this morning at 7.24m causing minor flooding and no damage. Meanwhile, light rain on a wet catchment brought the river at Bathurst to minor flood level today.
• The Bogan River was in minor flood at Peak Hill and downstream. A major flood peak is approaching Warren.
• Minor flood peaks continue to move downstream in the headwaters of the Barwon, where the Macintyre Brook peaked at Coolmunda Dam at 1.82m at 11am, and at about 6m at Inglewood Bridge at 3pm . The Severn at Ashford peaked around 2.5m around the latter time. At Goondiwindi, where water levels were falling following an earlier peak, moderate flooding is expected as renewed rises arrive from upstream.
• A second moderate flood peak on the Belubula River which flows into the Lachlan was approaching Canowindra this afternoon, after the river peaked there yesterday on 5.21m around 4pm with moderate flooding. Mandagery Creek, which also flows into the Lachlan, peaked at 7.8m at Smithfield at 5pm yesterday.
• In the Namoi system, the major flood crest from last week's rain passed Goangra with a peak of 8.3m this afternoon, and was approaching Walgett in the lower Namoi. Meanwhile, the Peel River at Tamworth peaked from the latest rain around 2.4m this afternoon. Substantial flows from Cox's Creek and the Pilliga Scrub area are producing minor flooding approaching Wee Waa.
• The Castlereagh peaked around 3.6m at Mendooran about 1pm, with variable inflows providing flood warnings for the next few days ranging from below minor at Gilgandra to moderate to major at Coonamble.
• In Queensland, there have been renewed rises in the Warrego. The first crest passed Wyandra with a peak of 2.55m on Tuesday, and Barringun old gauge with 1.6m around noon today. The second crest passed Cunnamulla with a peak of 6.0m, also at noon. Both crests are causing minor flooding.
• On the Paroo, moderate to minor flooding was easing between Hungerford and Wanaaring. The river peaked at 2.28m at Willara Crossing late today.
• Two flood peaks are moving down the Bulloo, the latest one approaching Quilpie with minor flooding.

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East coast low brings gales, floods and heavy seas.

The low which developed off the NSW coast yesterday deepened today while remaining close to the coast between Sydney and Newcastle, bringing continued gales and heavy rain to the Hunter, Central and Illawarra Coasts and nearby inland areas. Flooding and heavy seas developed as the conditions continued. The low, cradled by high pressure systems to the west, south and east, and supported by a broad upper low, gradually deepened to around 993hPa late afternoon. It moved very slowly from a position east of Sydney during the morning to near Taree by late evening.

The strong pressure gradient around the southern flank of the low concentrated gales and the heaviest rain along the coast and exposed ranges between the Hunter and Shoalhaven. Steady moderate to heavy rain fell in this area all day, in many areas for the third day in a row. However an area of strong uplift developed off the Illawarra coast during the late morning as the low wound up, spawning two waves of intense rain which moved northwest over the Illawarra, Sydney and the Central Tablelands during the afternoon and overnight into early Saturday morning.

Rain

At Frenchs Forest in Sydney's north, 185mm fell midnight to midnight, with two heavier periods -- 64 between 10am and 3pm, and 49 between 6 and 9pm. The 48 hour total from midnight yesterday morning was 346mm. At nearby Cromer, the 48 hour total of 322.5mm to 9.15 this evening has an average return period of 28 years, whilst the 397mm in 48 hours to 9.30 tonight at Narrabeen Creek has an average return period of over 100 years! 224.5mm fell at Narrabeen Creek in the 24 hours to 9.30 tonight. Further inland, Chatswood recorded 211mm during the day to around midnight tonight, and 316 for the two days. The figures for Little Bay in Sydney's southeastern suburbs were 187 and 286mm. Most suburbs in eastern Sydney registered 75 to 125mm for each of the 24 hours to 9am this morning and Saturday morning, with Sydney's Observatory Hill recording 105mm and 136mm, each one well above the monthly average for August of 80mm. Some high 72 hour totals to 9am Saturday were Castle Cove 343mm, Frenchs Forest 356.8, Mosman 343.6, and Sydney Observatory Hill 301.

In the Illawarra and South Coast, heavy rain fell as far south as Moruya, with rainfall totals for the two days of the event of between 150 and 300mm in exposed locations. Robertson Pie Shop, legendary for its rain (and pies), recorded 195mm from midnight this morning to 10pm tonight, when the raingauge autorecorder appears to have malfunctioned. 152mm fell in the 12 hours to 9.40pm. Wongawilli, on the escarpment behind Wollongong, registered 104mm between 7pm and 2am Saturday. A report of 325mm at Kangaroo Valley for the 24 hours to 9am Saturday has yet to be confirmed. The 24 hours to 9am on Saturday gave Nowra RAN Air Station its wettest August day in 37 years of record with 170mm, whilst Moss Vale was not far short of its record August daily rainfall of 208mm in 120 years of record with a total of 188.2mm.

Two active cloud cells also brought two periods of heavy rain to the Macquarie River catchment on the Central Tablelands in the late afternoon and around midnight. Whilst not as intense as the coastal falls, the rain fell on saturated country, setting the scene for major flooding in Bathurst on Saturday. Some of the heavier reported 24 hour falls were 77mm to 4.15am Saturday at Mount David, 64mm to 7.06am Saturday at Oberon, 84mm to 7.36am Saturday at the Bindo raingauge near Hampton, and 87.4 at Lithgow and 84.6 at nearby Cheethams Flats to 9.00am Saturday. On the Blue Mountains, Katoomba recorded 159.8 in the 24 hours and 244.7 for the 72 hours to 9am Saturday.

On the Central Coast, consistent moderate to heavy rain has built up some impressive 3 day totals. To 9am Saturday, Narara, north of Gosford, registered 218mm, Wyong 182.8 and Peats Ridge 186.6, with 104mm spilling over the hills to Wollombi. Heavy rain also fell steadily on south-facing slopes of the Barrington Tops, on the northeastern side of the Hunter Valley. Carrow Brook, about 30km NNE of Singleton recorded 117.4mm in the 48 hours to 9am Saturday.

Flooding

Local flooding and road closures were widespread in Sydney, with 14 major roads affected at some stage during the day. The NRMA recorded delays in providing vehicle assistance of up to 3 hours. Water on roads caused many road accidents through aquaplaning or poor visibility. Elsewhere in the state, three people were killed and 19 injured when a bus collided with a truck at Bookham near Yass, blocking the Hume Highway for much of the day, whilst the Princes Highway was closed by an accident south of Nowra in which two died; both collisions were weather-related. A family at Collaroy was evacuated last night when floodwaters threatened to cause a landslip onto their house, while a house at Gosford was also evacuated.

Flooding in the Macquarie River lead to major sandbagging operations and evacuations in the city of Bathurst and the village of Perthville to its south. 114 residents of Bathurst were evacuated late in the day as SES workers played a waiting game with the river. Continuing rain in the catchment made prediction of the peak impossible, and evacuation plans escalated during the day as the rain kept falling and the forecast flood peak rising. By day's end, a peak of 6.8m was expected early Saturday morning, though this was to be again delayed by further heavy rain in the catchment around midnight. Water began flowing across the Great Western Highway just east of the city around noon, and the highway was closed early evening, though reopened again with traffic restricted to one lane. To the southwest of Bathurst, major flooding occured late in the day at Canowindra on the Belubula River, though no damage was reported.

Flooding from previous rain events continued in northwestern NSW. There was major flooding on the Castlereagh at Coonamble, but preparations to evacuate 800 people were not required when the river peaked below forecast levels around midday.

Gales

With the deep low near Sydney and a ridge of high pressure through Bass Strait, a very strong pressure gradient was maintained along the NSW South and Central Coasts. For much of the day, the pressure difference between Sydney and Gabo Island near the NSW/Victorian border was around 23 hPa. As a result, gale force winds continued to batter the coast south from the Hunter to the Victorian border, with winds averaging 25 to 35 knots and gusts to 45 and 55 knots. Wind gusts to 60 knots were reported off the Sydney coast. Press reports claimed winds of more than 150km/h hit the Illawarra area during the early evening.

The prolonged strong winds downed trees and powerlines, removed or damaged scores of building roofs, closed the Port of Sydney and delayed operations at Sydney Airport. SES workers around NSW attended 2,000 jobs and the Fire Brigade more than 850 during today. Damage caused by fallen trees and broken branches was widespread around Sydney, the Gosford/Wyong area and Blue Mountains, with saturated subsoil giving trees lowered resistance to the persistent strong winds. Power failures affected thousands of homes in Sydney, mainly around the northern beaches, lower North Shore and eastern suburbs. About 3000 homes in Nowra, Bowral and Wollongong were also without power. At Mosman, the RSL Club roof was blown into Military Road, as were several other roofs and shop awnings, damaging cars. Botany Bay and Port Jackson were closed to commercial shipping movements after winds gusting to 92km/h were recorded on Sydney Harbour. The east-west runway at Sydney Airport was closed for several hours, causing delays up to an hour and some flight cancellations. Centennial Park in Sydney, and seven national parks were closed. Up to 20,000 commuters were stranded when power lines fell on a train at Edgecliff station about 4.15pm, closing the Eastern Suburbs line for the rest of the day. The $1m big top of the Moscow Circus in Moore Park was torn to shreds, dragging trucks used to secure the tent ropes more than 10 metres. Off the Mid North Coast, five men were rescued from a yacht in difficulties since yesterday.

Seas

The long period of gales built up unusually heavy seas, with the Bureau of Meteorology taking the unusual step of issuing a warning for large waves of 6 or 7 metres to threaten coastal buildings and installations for the coast from Sydney south to the Victorian border. The Manly Hydraulics Laboratory buoy moored 3km off Bondi recorded average wave heights above 4 metres from late this morning almost continuously until early Sunday morning, with the highest 33% of those waves between 8 and 10m during that time. The wave buoy off Port Kembla recorded average wave heights of between 6 and 7m from midday to midnight today, with the highest 33% of waves exceeding 12m for a short time after midday. Further south, the seas built up later in the day, with Batemans Bay buoy recording its highest waves of 10m, and Eden buoy around 9m, late this evening. All beaches from Sydney to the Victorian Border were closed

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Rain and gales ease as East coast low moves slowly away.

The low pressure system responsible for three days of wild weather in central and southeastern NSW transferred to the central Tasman Sea today, easing rain along the coast around mid-morning, though gales and heavy seas continued. With the upper low moving offshore overnight, the tight low centre, which was 50km northeast of Newcastle at 3am, weakened away during the morning as a new low centre developed several hundred kilometres south of Lord Howe Island, turning the winds onto the coast from easterly to southerly and cutting rainfall to a few showers.

Rain tapered off in most areas some time during the morning after giving some impressive and widespread totals for the 24 hours to 9am. Highest were Moss Vale on 188.2 and Nowra AP 170 in the Illawarra region, where the Princes Highway at Dunmore, the Illawarra Highway at Albion Park, and the Macquarie and Jamberoo Passes were closed this morning. In Sydney's north, Castle Cove received 169.0, Frenchs Forest 163.2 and Mosman 156.2. A band of exceptionally heavy rain which swept across the Central Tablelands late last night and early this morning (see also story for 7 August) gave Katoomba 159.8 for the 24 hours, 101mm of which fell between 9pm and 6am this morning.

Gale to storm force winds and very rough seas, however, were maintained through the day from the Hunter Coast south to around Montague Island. Anemometers at Newcastle's Nobbys signal station, Norah Head Lighthouse, Bellambi Point and Jervis Bay Lighthouse registered sustained wind speeds of between 35 and 45 knots for most of the day, with peak gusts of 51 knots at Norah Head at 2.20pm, and 50 knots at Montague Island at 12.20am. Wave heights continued much as yesterday (see story for 7 August) with the Bureau continuing to warn of 6-metre waves in the surf zone between Seal Rocks and the Victorian border, and unusually high waves encroaching on, and eroding, land above the normal high tide mark, especially around the astronomical high tides about 8am and 8.30pm. Two houses at Lake Tabourie south of Ulladulla and one at Warilla south of Wollongong were extensively damaged by wind, but there were no reports of sea damage to buildings.

Land slips caused some evacuations in Gosford and a collapsed road at Avalon in Sydney's north, with other land slips reported at Newport and Collaroy. Flooding caused some small-scale evacuation in Wyong. Over 15,000 homes in Sydney, the Illawarra and Southern Highlands lost power during last night, with long delays in restoring power as crews were hampered by strong winds and rain. 2,000 homes, mainly in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, still had not had power restored by this evening.

Floods

With rain all but ceasing, the flood situation began to resolve itself.

• The Macquarie River at Bathurst grabbed most attention during the day, with forecasts of a flood peak of around 7.5 metres, which would have been the highest peak since the 1820s. By 8am, the river had reached 6.55m on the Stanley Street gauge, exceeding the August 1986 flood level. It rose slowly to a peak of 6.69m around midday, before slowly receding. The lower than expected level was attributed to lower flows from the Fish River than were earlier estimated, and caused much relief in the city. The Great Western Highway closed mid-morning as water spilt into Bathurst streets and entered some homes between the bridge and railway station. Around 500 residents were evacuated, and several dozen homes flooded. Press reports indicated the area was declared a natural disaster region.
• Meanwhile, the earlier peak in the Macquarie River reached Warren today, causing major flooding with a peak late afternoon of about 9.0m on the town gauge.
• The Belubula River peaked at The Needles, upstream of Canowindra, at about 4.92m around 4am causing moderate flooding. On Mandagery Creek, the peak is near Eugowra, where the level was 8.75m at 3.30pm with minor flooding. In the Lachlan, the river peaked at Forbes Iron Bridge at 9.5m and Cottons Weir at 5.3m, both around 6pm with moderate flooding.
• In the Hunter River, flooding was complicated in the lower river by separate flood crests arriving this afternoon from lower Hunter tributaries, and a second peak forecast for Maitland tomorrow as upper Hunter flows arrived. Flood crests in the lower Hunter tributaries produced peaks of 3.9m (moderate) at Bulga on Wollombi Brook around 7.30am, and 5.24m (below minor) at Mill Dam Falls on the Williams River around 6am. Meanwhile the crest from the upper Hunter peaked at Muswellbrook at 9.65m (moderate) about 8am. Evacuations began at Morpeth near Maitland late morning, whilst at Muswellbrook only three evacuations were required. Many rural roads in the Hunter Valley were closed by flood and run-off water during the day, with the towns of Hinton and Denman isolated during the afternoon.
• Heavy inflows into Tuggerah Lake south of Newcastle occurred overnight, and again during the afternoon as runoff from heavy rain between 6am and noon arrived. Minor flooding occurred..
• The Georges River, which flows through Sydney's southern suburbs, was in minor to moderate flood, with a peak at Liverpool Weir just below 2.5m during the late morning.
• The Nepean system produced minor to moderate flooding between Menangle and Camden, as well as minor flooding around Richmond due to inflows from the Grose River. Hawkesbury River ferries ceased operation.
• In the Shoalhaven, moderate to heavy rain in the lower catchment ceased about 6am, but caused moderate flooding in the river around Nowra with a peak of 3.58m at Nowra at 1.30pm.
• In the Namoi catchment, the Peel River again rose to moderate flood levels at Tamworth, with a peak around 5.30m during mid-afternoon, providing the fourth flood crest now moving down the Namoi.

Queensland flood update

• In the Barwon and tributaries, the main flood peak is in the Weir River near Talwood, between Goondiwindi and Mungindi, with minor flooding, though major flooding is expected downstream. A secondary crest is approaching Goondiwindi with moderate flooding. This crest is formed from waters in the Dumeresq River, which peaked at Bengalla at 5.4m at 6pm last night, and the MacIntyre River, where the peak is approaching Holdfast.
• Minor flooding continues in the Paroo around Hungerford, and the Bulloo around South Comongin.

Rain favours locust plague

The Australian Plague Locust Commission issued the cheery news today that the possibility of a major locust plague next Autumn is increasing. The Commission Director, Grahame Hamilton, pointed to current widespread rain in western NSW and Queensland as providing ideal breeding conditions, with the long range forecast for more rain. He said further rain around October/November and January/February would provide ideal conditions for locusts to reach plague levels.

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Major storm devastates Wollongong

A sequence of major storms caused widespread devastation in Wollongong, on the coast south of Sydney, yesterday and today. A detailed story will appear here when time permits, but the following rainfall figures for the 24 hours to 9am today, which are accepted as accurate by the Bureau of Meteorology as at 25 October 1998, gives some indication of the nature of the rainfall:

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