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The page is updated every 30 minutes at about 20 and 50 minutes past the hour.
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Friday 23, 23.00EDT: Yvette downgraded but floods in store across WA, NT and SA
Tropical Cyclone Yvette was downgraded below cyclone strength early this afternoon WST as its central pressure rose to 994hPa and maximum sustained winds dropped to 30 knots (55km/h). It is now heading ESE at 15km/h and is still forecast to swing to the SE and strengthen slightly into cyclone category 1 status before making landfall between Cape Leveque and De Grey, in the vicinity of Broome, probably on the afternoon of Christmas Day.
The inland tropical depression, also with a central pressure of 994hPa, is tracking south into fairly uninhabited country in the WA Interior and warnings are out for heavy rain, flooding and traffic disruptions there, in the SW of the NT and across northwestern SA over the weekend. Earlier in the day, Broome Airport recorded 132.8mm between 6am and 3pm as a band of thunderstorms and heavy showers associated with the inland low took its time moving over the town. The Airport's 225.6mm for the 24 hours to 9am set a new December record in the station's 76-year history, and several other stations in the area also set new records.
Friday 23, 09.30EDT: Deep inland low joins TC Yvette as a WA weather threat
An inland low pressure system with the same central pressure as Tropical Cyclone Yvette continues to bring thunderstorms and heavy rain to the western and southern Kimberley region of WA. Both systems have central pressures of 992hPa. TC Yvette was located 770km NNW of Port Hedland at 2am WST and is still slow moving, but expected to begin moving to the SE today to make landfall sometime late in the Christmas weekend as a fairly weak category 1 cyclone. The inland tropical low was located about 300km SE of Broome at 4am WST and is expected to move initially south, gradually clearing the area.
Between 9am yesterday and 6am today WST, the heaviest rain has been along a line from Broome to the SE of Fitzroy Crossing. Fitzroy Crossing itself has registered 151mm and Christmas Creek Homestead, 80km SE of Fitzroy Crossing, 174mm. Over 200mm has been recorded at a number of places in the Kimberley over the past two days and the Fitzroy River and some of its tributaries upstream of Fitzroy Crossing are now at minor flood level and rising quickly. Flood warnings or watches are in force across much of the region and, while rain is expected to ease in the Kimberley as the tropical low moves away, it will resume when Yvette moves into the area in a few days.
The tropical low will curve SE into SA during the weekend. The BoM is forecasting heavy rain in the order of 50 to 100mm with some totals to 150mm to fall in the eastern WA interior and northwestern SA. Warnings have been issued in both areas for widespread flooding and road closures.
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