Ben McBurney, 22 May 2013, 5:45 AM UTC
Heavy rain drenches inland QLD
Queensland's southwest has received soaking rain overnight,with some
places seeing their heaviest rain in almost two years.
The Channel Country saw the best rain, with widespread falls between
25 and 50mm, although the substantial rain extended as far east as
Charleville.
Bedourie and Thargomindah saw their heaviest rain in almost two years,
recording 34mm and 43mm respectively to 9am this morning. Quilpie saw
its heaviest May rainfall in 23 years, picking up 33mm.
A broad low pressure trough combined with tropical moisture sourced
from the Indian Ocean to cause the rain.
Rain areas should spread east today with the trough, bringing a
further widespread 5-15mm to districts south of the Northern
Goldfields, with some isolated falls of up to 30mm. Roma collected
25mm to 3pm today, its heaviest May rain in four years.
Much of the coast should see only light falls, including Brisbane,
although some parts of central coast could pick up as much as 20mm. In
the state's tropics, falls should only be light.
The rain is great news for drought affected regions, with the
Diamantina and Murweh regional councils in the state's west seeing
some of the highest totals. Unfortunately, areas north of the Boulia
council have not seen as much rain, and are unlikely to do so,
although the Richmond area may see up to 5-10mm today.
The trough should move offshore tomorrow, clearing rain areas from
much of the state. However a low should develop in the south, causing
showers and the odd storm to persist into Friday. Most places should
see less than 5mm, with falls of up to 10-15mm on the ranges near the
New South Wales border.
Looking into the weekend, a large will bring generally dry and sunny
conditions, with chilly mornings across the inland.
Note to media: You are welcome to republish text from the above news article as direct quotes from Weatherzone. When doing so, please reference www.weatherzone.com.au in the credit.