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Mellissa Mackellar, 25 Nov 2012, 3:34 AM UTC

Weekend of wild storms for WA

Weekend of wild storms for WA
Central and southern parts of Western Australia have been hit by thunderstorms this weekend, and the state's southeast is copping it today. A broad, slow-moving low pressure trough has been continually generating widespread thunderstorms this weekend, bringing heavy rain, hail and damaging wind. The heaviest rain fell in the Goldfields where Salmon Gums, Norseman Airport and Kalgoorlie all had their highest totals since March. Norseman had 41mm to 9am on Sunday, while Kalgoorlie had 26mm. For Kalgoorlie this was their heaviest November rain since 2003, with eight millimetres falling in a single 10 minute period. Storms in the Goldfields also produced some of the strongest winds, gusting to 109km/h at Leonora and 98km/h at Laverton. Storms were severe in the Perth area with 26mm at the airport, 25mm falling in fifteen minutes. There were also reports of 1.5cm hail in the northern suburbs. Heavy downpours of over 30mm were also recorded in the Central Wheatbelt, Southern Coastal and Great Southern districts. During Sunday morning the Goldfields continued to cop it, while the trough moved eastward bringing southeastern parts into the firing line. During the afternoon these storms may becoming severe, with a risk of damaging winds, large hail and flash flooding once again. On Monday the trough will cross into South Australia, taking the main area of instability with it, making thunderstorms less likely in central and southern WA.
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