Cold in southern WA, central and southern NT
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| Above: The surface
chart for 9.30am CST shows the low crossing the SA coast near Kangaroo
Island, with a major trough extending into the NT. BoM Below: The infrared satellite image for the same time. Cloud can be seen streaming around the back of the low. In the NT, the thick cloudband kept daytime temperatures well below normal. The yellow/orange spot in central NT marks high (cold) cloud tops above a storm that gave Pigeon Hole, near Victoria River Downs, 62.6mm for the 24 hours to 9am. JCU |
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The low deepened to 997hPa overnight in response to colder air moving in aloft, and picked up substantial moisture from waters around Eyre Peninsula which are currently 1.5 to 2° warmer than normal. The first band of heavy rain crossed Kangaroo Island, the Fleurieu Peninsula and Adelaide Hills overnight, bringing falls of up to 60mm to 9am at Second Valley, on the coast 70km south of Adelaide. Most other centres in the area recorded more than 40mm -- unusually high for the area.
As the low crossed the SA coast near Kangaroo Island and moved slowly towards western Victoria, the rain band wrapped around its southern side and returned to the same area from the south to give even heavier rain during the afternoon and evening. The Clare Valley and Northern Mount Lofty Ranges caught the heaviest falls, with 24 hour to 9am Thursday totals of 62.4mm at Watervale and 56.4 at Mintaro in the Clare Valley, and 59.2 at Laura in the Northern Mount Lofty Ranges east of Port Pirie. Flooding was reported between Clare and Leasingham, parts of the Main North Road were under water, and at least three houses had to be sandbagged at Watervale. Cape Willoughby, at the eastern end of Kangaroo Island, recorded 50mm to 9am Thursday, its heaviest October one-day fall in 111 years of record, and following on from a near-record-breaking 42mm to 9am today. Victor Harbour, with 42.4mm, came within 0.2mm of equalling its 116-year October record, while Neptune Island had the distinction of exceeding its record over 33 years on two consecutive days, with falls of 36 and 34mm. Among the heaviest totals for the 2 days to 9am Thursday were 93.4mm at Yankalilla on the southern Fleurieu Peninsula, and 92mm at Penneshaw, Allandale and Cape Willoughby, all on Kangaroo Island.
As the low moved slowly into Victoria, the tightening pressure gradient between it and a high over the Bight brought gale force winds across the area from late afternoon into the night. Winds gusted to 113km/h at Neptune Island, and 85km/h inland at Clare. In Adelaide, trees and powerlines were downed, causing over 10,000 homes to lose power, while roofs were damaged and roads blocked by debris and flooding. Over 300 emergency calls were lodged, with the worst damage reported from North Beach on Yorke Peninsula, where a shack's roof was blown away and a refrigerator lifted into a neighbouring yard.
Temperatures across central and southern Northern Territory today were 12 to 15° below the October average as a huge cloudband, lying in the northern extension of the trough that crossed SA today, kept sunshine away. In southern WA, both Albany Airport and Salmon Gums, between Norseman and Esperance, equalled their October record low minimum temperatures this morning, as high pressure moved in behind the cold airmass that is sweeping across SA today.
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