World News – AU – Southeast Queensland prepares for flooding after a wet weekend

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for areas from the southeast coast of Queensland to the border with New South Wales. as well as parts of the Wide Bay and Burnett regions.

Heavy rain, noxious winds, unusually high tides and dangerous surf hit the region on Saturday when a surface trough deepened off the coast.

It has been predicted that a low pressure system will form along the trough that will reach the coast by Monday morning.

The heaviest rainfall on Sunday on the Gold Coast subsided before 7:00 p.m. CEST, but the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) forecast more rain, high tide and storm winds for Monday and issued a message from Noosa about the sunshine out to the coast NSW border.

In its latest update just before 11:00 PM AEST, the BOM also forecast « unusually high tides, exceeding the highest tide of the year » for the next mornings and warned of dangerous surf conditions that « could lead to significant coastal erosion ». .

In the hinterland of the Gold Coast on Sunday in Upper Springbrook, 475 millimeters of rain fell in the 24 hours until 9:00 a.m., of which more than 300 millimeters fell in six hours from Saturday evening.

Shane Kennedy, senior BOM forecaster, said the intense rainfall in places like Springbrook is extremely rare.

« Just in the six-hour period that ended around 3:00 am, [Springbrook] got 323mm, which is less than a 1 percent chance that we would see this in general – more than one to 100 year event, « he said.

The bill of materials said rainfall in the area was higher than expected on Saturday evening when a line of convergence across the Queensland-New South Wales border stalled after rising from the south.

Since 18. Received more than 530 requests for assistance at midnight on Saturday night, with most jobs in the Ipswich, Logan and Gold Coast areas.

Meteorologist Rosa Hoff said the average wave height on the southeast coast was about five meters, with « some peaks up to nine and even ten meters » on Sunday.

If flooding could cut you off, make preparations. ABC Emergency has put together a list of things to do when you are concerned.

The surf was whirled up by strong to stormy winds, with harmful gusts of up to 100 km / h being registered at Cape Moreton. There are storm warnings for the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast on Monday.

NSW also has a flood watch and severe weather warning for heavy rain, noxious winds, unusually high tides and noxious surf for the northern rivers and parts of the central north coast.

Areas affected are Tweed Heads, Byron Bay, Lismore, Kyogle, Yamba, Grafton, Coffs Harbor, Maclean, Woolgoolga, Sawtell and Dorrigo.

Surf Life Saving Queensland (SLSQ) closed all beaches on the Gold Coast on Sunday due to dangerous surfing conditions.

« Due to the strong tides and debris, now is not the time to go swimming in streams. « 

With some roads already closed, the Gold Coast Council urged drivers not to drive through floods.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said beaches would remain closed while sandbag stations in the area would close at 6:00 p.m..

Brisbane took between 20mm and 40mm of rain, but in some southern suburbs and in Logan the falls were up to 70mm.

Since more heavy rain is possible, the parts list issued a flood warning for the Logan and Albert rivers on Saturday at around 2:00 p.m..

Not much rain got inland. On the eastern Darling Downs, gauges between 5mm and 15mm fall.

Emergency Services Secretary Mark Ryan said the BOM told him that the impact of the weather event could be similar to a Category 1 cyclone.

« This is not something we normally see – but we will also see tides and waves affecting the locations in Moreton Bay around Redcliffe as well as other parts of Moreton Bay, » he said.

« We have crews on standby to respond to this event. SES groups are ready to go and we also have rapid water technicians ready when they are needed. « 

Emergency Services Commissioner Greg Leach said the rain that had already fallen had « sunk in », creating the opportunity for low levels and flash floods.

« The state rescue service has received over 530 requests for assistance in the last 24 hours . . . with water leaks, roof damage and dilapidated trees, « he said.

« If you have loose items in your yard and the weather is a little bad, get out there and secure those items. Keep children away from flooding in the event your property gets flooded.

« What we are seeing is a significant change in the weather pattern in Queensland. The rainy season is here. We only faced bushfire situations last week but now the great wet has arrived and we need to be prepared for the weather we are dealing with now but we will likely see it in the months to come. « 

Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) said the rain helped bring the fire under control on Fraser Island (K’Gari).

« With the help of welcome rains and a massive response from our crews, as well as the local community and our partners at the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) and Butchulla Aboriginal Corporation, the fire is now contained, » QFES said.

« QFES is returning control of the fire to QPWS today, but our crews will be patrolling the site to make sure the community stays safe. « 

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AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time, 10 hours before GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)

Floods, Queensland, Meteorological Bureau, New South Wales, Northern Rivers