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Kim Westcott, 05 Feb 2014, 6:27 AM UTC

Monsoonal rains soak the tropics

Monsoonal rains soak the tropics
Rain has been drenching the majority of the nation's north these past few days, with today being no exception. The Northern Australian Monsoon has remained active across the tropics over the past week, which has led to an increase in convective activity and several tropical lows and cyclones which in turn has aided in widespread rainfall. Virtually everywhere in the Darwin-Daly district in the Northern Territory saw some rain to 9am this morning. With the lightest falls totaling 4 mm in Tindal and the heaviest in excess of 100 mm in Delamere. Similarly, barely anywhere was left untouched by rain in Queensland's Peninsula, with falls reaching up to 67 mm at Coen Airport. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Fletcher has also added to the vast amounts of rainfall seen across the Gulf Country. Kowanyama saw 339 mm in the last two days, making it its heaviest two day total since 1952. WA's Kimberley was hit and miss with the rain to 9am this morning. Halls Creek saw 67 mm, with 11 mm falling in 10 minutes as thunderstorms raged overhead. Elsewhere in the district Wyndham, Mandora and Kununurra all missed out on the rain. The rainfall is not just located in the far north, it also extends slightly further south. As many areas in the North Tropical Coast and Tablelands region of QLD recorded rainfall up to 9am today, with the exception of Mareeba Airport. In fact, yesterday Cairns Airport recorded its wettest day of the year so far, with rainfall totaling 67.8 mm. With the monsoon expected to remain active during the next week, heavy rainfall is expected to continue across the tropics. An increase in tropical cyclone development could also see to exceptionally heavy rain over the next four days, with coastal areas of the Gulf Country likely to see accumulated falls of up to 400 mm.
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