• 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. 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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Torrential local rain in Sydney

An almost stationary storm cell drifted in from the NE across the northern Sydney suburbs of Duffys Forest, St Ives and Pymble and towards North Ryde between 8 am and 12.30 pm today. Its estimated rate of movement was 2 km/hr. Between 8 am and 12.30 pm, St Ives (RichmondAve) had 117 mm of rain and St Ives (Palm Ave) 91 mm. At Palm Ave rain fell at a rate exceeding 20 mm per hour each hour for the 4 hours between 8.30 and 12.30. There was a remarkable decrease in rain to the south of the storm. Belrose, 5 km as the crow flies from the Palm Ave site, receive 0.6 mm in the same 4 hour period. --Don White

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January temperature records fall in the Great Southern, WA

Many centres in the Great Southern district of Western Australia, and some adjacent areas, recorded their lowest ever January maximum temperatures today. Mount Barker, Ravensthorpe, Narembeen and Ongerup all recorded a top temperatures of just 15C. The reading at Narembeen was a massive 18.7 degrees below normal, and other centres were not far behind. Hyden and Esperance recorded maxima of 17C.

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Record rainfall brings flooding to Esperance WA

The heaviest rain in the recorded history of Esperance over the past few days has caused significant flooding. Between late last Monday evening and 9am today, 209mm was recorded, the heaviest rainfall event since rainfall records began in 1889.

Major roads in and around the town remained closed this morning, just a few weeks after bushfires swept across the Condingup area in the region killing thousands of sheep and cattle. The swollen Dalyup River washed away a 10m section of the Dalyup West River bridge, as well as washing away some roads. Rail and air services to the town were also briefly suspended. Many power and phone lines are also down, isolating farmers, and unharvested grain is likely to be so damaged as to be not worth harvesting. Some damage to homes and businesses has also been reported. Damage in Esperance Shire was later placed at about $1.7m for infrastructure alone.

107mm fell in the 24 hours to 9 this morning, of which 55mm fell between 10 and 11.30am yesterday. This is the third highest one-day fall on record (the highest is 126mm on 30 April 1922), but the two day fall of 189mm to 9am replaces the previous highest two-day total of 137.7mm recorded on 5 and 6 June 1941.

So far this January, Esperance has recorded 212mm, compared with an average January rainfall of 13mm. The previous highest January total at the Post Office site was 133.2mm in 1939. Heavy rain also fell in nearby areas, with Munglinup's Meleleuca gauge recording 119mm in the 24 hours to 9am today. A slow-moving, strong upper level trough undercut by cool, moist southeasterly winds near the surface is to blame for the unseasonal rain.

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Thunderstorms bring some heavy falls to SE Qld

Thunderstorms moving across the Granite Belt to the Brisbane area late this afternoon and evening brought some isolated heavy rain totals. Brisbane's Archerfield Airfield received 90mm between 8 and 9pm, with an exceptional 30.6mm falling in 10 minutes to 8.26pm, at the same time as winds gusted to 70km/h. Brisbane Airport's No 2 gauge recorded 18.4mm between 9.30 and 10pm. In the Granite Belt, Applethorpe recorded 29mm in the hour to 9pm. Some high 24 hour falls to 9am Sunday, most of which fell during the storms, were Archerfield 107, Calamvale 89 and Eight Mile Plains 87mm.

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Heatwave conditions bring major bushfire to SA

In its hottest day of summer so far, virtually all of South Australia experienced top temperatures above the old century mark today, with 40C being exceeded at all places away from the coast. Temperatures in the low to mid 40s were generally from 10 to 16 above average, with fresh northwesterly winds and relatively high humidity keeping conditions uncomfortable. Twelve people were hospitalised by the heat.

Oodnadatta Airport recorded the state's top temperature of 45.5C, and Port Augusta, Roxby Downs, Marree and Minnipa all reported 45 or above. Even coastal areas were not spared, with Cape Northumberland, the state's southernmost point, recording a maximum of 40C, 18.6 above normal, and Victor Harbour 42C, 17.4 above. The heat spread into western Victoria, where Portland's Cashmere Airport registered 39C, 17.7 up on average. Parafield Airport on Adelaide's northern outskirts reported a top of 44.5, its highest temperature for any month in 37 years of record, while in Adelaide the official Kent Town site recorded a top of 41.8.

The hot day followed an equally uncomfortable night. Minimum temperatures around 10 to 12 above normal covered central and northern parts of the state. Oodnadatta recorded an overnight minimum of 31.1 and Moomba 30.0, while Streaky Bay's 28.0 was 12.1 above normal, and Ceduna's 26.0 11.1 above.

Two towns were evacuated near Millicent in the state's southeast as a major bushfire broke out just before midday near the intersection of the Penola to Robe road and the Princes Highway. The settlements of Hatherleigh and Rendelsham were threatened before a change in wind direction began moving the fire front to the east. About 2,500 hectares of farmland and scrub, six sheds and hundreds of kilometres of fencing were destroyed by the fire which was battled by over 300 firefighters and two water bombers. Squally winds accompanied a cooler change which crossed the coast late afternoon. Adelaide's Edinburgh Airport recorded gusts to 98km/h at 6.10pm.

Local flooding from storms in Toowoomba

A heavy thunderstorm during the late afternoon brought flash flooding to the Toowoomba area, west of Brisbane. Unfortunately, the city's automatic weather station was struck by lightning, losing its rainfall record!

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Severe storm lashes Ipswich, Qld

Thirty-nine homes, and the city's courthouse and.sewerage treatment works were damaged in a wild storm that struck Ipswich on Brisbane's western fringe around 9.30 this evening. A number of the houses were unroofed. Some 8,000 properties were blacked out, trees uprooted and powerlines downed, while heavy rain caused flash flooding in the CBD. It is the third day in a row that unforecast severe storms have struck southeastern Queensland.

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Another hot day in central southern WA

Heat, which has been building in Western Australia's south during the past two days produced unusually hot weather in the area around Kalgoorlie and south to the coast today. At Balladonia Homestead, about 200km east of Norseman, the overnight minimum of 24.9 was 10.5C above average, and was followed by a top temperature of 44.0, 12.9 above the norm. Eyre, not far away on the coast, recorded a maximum of 39.4, 13.4 above normal, and Esperance Airport, further west, had a top of 39.0, 12.9 above.

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Heat moves to SA, Vic

Daytime temperatures 8 to 12 degrees above normal continued across much of Victoria, the southern two-thirds of SA and western NSW today. Central and western Victoria suffered the most, with Melbourne City reporting the greatest departure above normal -- 12.2 degrees with a maximum temperature of 38.0C. Other unusually high temperatures were 37.0 (+11.7) at Hamilton in the state's west, and 44.1 (+11.5) at Broken Hill in western NSW.

Torrential downpours in Qld

Heavy rain is the norm in Queensland at this time of the year, but there were some unusually heavy tropical downpours on the state's tropical coast today. Low Isles, off the coast north of Cairns, recorded 15.4mm in 10 minutes to 7pm, followed by 51.6mm in the next hour, whilst a violent thunderstorm gave Cardwell, south of Cairns, 79mm between 9am and 3pm.

Queensland flood report

Floodwaters from heavy rain earlier in the month continue to move down Queensland inland and Gulf streams. In the Gulf country, minor flooding is easing in the lower Flinders and Nicholson Rivers, while in the Diamantina River and Lakes further south, moderate flooding is easing. Minor flooding continues in the lower Barcoo and Thomson Rivers, but levels are falling with the main floodwaters now in Coopers Creek, where moderate flooding is easing at Windorah. The Georgina at Urandangie peaked at 2.80m during the past few days and minor flooding is easing, though minor to moderate flooding continues downstream. The Bulloo peaked at Autumnvale at about 5.0m this morning with minor flooding, but the river continues to rise around Thargomindah.

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