Australian Weather

12 Feb 2026, 5:50AM UTC

When storms set in late on Wednesday night and continued into this Thursday morning in Alice Springs, it made it eight days straight that the iconic Northern Territory outback city had seen rain. The total rainfall over the eight-day streak was 125.2mm, with the 43.4mm recorded in the 24 hours to 9am Thursday being the heaviest single day of rain. There were reports of multiple rescues as flash flooding occurred in and around the normally dry Todd River. No additional rain was recorded on Thursday between 9am and 3pm, although some showers were still in the area, meaning the streak may extend to nine days.  How unusual are Alice Springs rainfall events lasting over a week? Alice Springs receives a relatively meagre 283.7mm of rainfall on average each year, spread out over an average of 42.9 rain days. That means the city can expect less than one rain day per week across the year, which makes eight-day wet spells (or longer) very much a rarity. But they are not unprecedented: The last time it rained on eight consecutive days in Alice Springs was in June/July 2023, when the streak actually lasted nine days, delivering 31mm in total. You have to go back 44 years to find an eight-day streak of wet days in February. What caused the last eight days of rainfall? The loop below shows the storms lashing the Alice Springs area overnight. Image: Six-hour combined satellite and radar loop to 3:30am ACST, showing storms over Central Australia and the Alice Springs area. "Slow-moving storms coalesced from the south along a trough line, harnessing intense tropical moisture brewed by weeks of tropical cyclone and monsoon activity,” Weatherzone meteorologist Jess Miskelly explains. The occasional influxes of tropical moisture like we’ve seen this week are why Alice Springs is more likely to see significant rainfall totals in summer than winter. Indeed, January and February are The Alice's wettest two months on average (42.4mm and 40.7mm respectively) while August is the driest month with an average of just 8mm. February’s running total of 125.2mm means that Alice Springs has already received three times its average monthly rainfall. But it’s worth noting that just 0.4mm fell in January (on the first day of the year). READ MORE: Queensland flood threat with heavy rain and severe thunderstorms later this week Meanwhile, several weather stations near Alice Springs recorded even heavier falls overnight, including Mt Lloyd with 121mm, 76mm of which fell in an intense downpour between 1am and 2am. Alice Springs and southern parts of the NT should see a return to relatively dry conditions from Friday through to the early part of next week.

11 Feb 2026, 11:59PM UTC

A multi-day soaking is set to deliver hundreds of millimetres of rain to parts of central and southern Queensland over the next four days, with flooding likely from Friday into the weekend. Stalled low pressure trough to cause days of rain and storms A low pressure trough will stall over central and southern Qld from Thursday to Sunday and interact with a large mass of tropical moisture to cause widespread rain and thunderstorms. A blocking high pressure system centred over the Tasman Sea will help to keep this rain-bearing weather pattern in place, resulting in four days of rain and storms over central and southern parts of Qld. Image: Modelled mean sea level pressure and precipitable water on Friday morning, showing moisture-laden air and a low pressure trough over Qld. Source: Weatherzone. Rain and storms from Thursday to Sunday Thursday will feature widespread showers and thunderstorms across Qld, particularly across southern parts of the state. While Thursday’s rain is unlikely to cause widespread flooding, it will dampen the ground and prime the landscape for flooding in the coming days. Severe storms may also cause isolated areas of flash flooding in Qld on Thursday. Friday will see more intense rain and thunderstorms developing over central and southeast Qld. This heavy rain and severe storm activity should develop from overnight Thursday into Friday morning and will likely continue throughout Friday. Further rain and thunderstorms will hit central and southern Qld on Saturday and Sunday, with potential for more heavy rain and flooding. Some computer models predict heavy rain over parts of southeast Qld on both Saturday and Sunday, possibly enough to cause further flooding. Rain and thunderstorms will also affect other areas of northern, central and eastern Australia during the remainder of this week. This includes a threat of heavy rain and flooding in far northeast NSW. Hundreds of millimetres possible Some areas in central and southeast Qld and northern NSW could see 100 to 200 mm of rain between Thursday and Sunday this week. Computer models indicate the potential for more than 300 mm in southeast Qld and far northeast NSW over this four-day period. Image: Forecast accumulated rain over the next seven days. Source: Weatherzone. While there is a high amount of uncertainty regarding exactly where and how much rain will fall over the next four days, there are clear signs that flooding is a high risk over central and southeast Qld from Friday into the weekend. This flood threat also extends into far northeast NSW. How to stay safe during flooding Some roads may become impassable as flooding develops over Qld and northeast NSW later this week. Anyone living in these areas should keep an eye on the latest warnings over the next few days and take the following steps to keep safe: Don’t enter floodwater. This includes driving, walking or swimming. Obey road signs and plan ahead before travelling through flooded areas. Avoid flooded drains, rivers, streams and other waterways. Check the Queensland Government website for local emergency warnings and advice. Contact the SES on 132 500 for emergency assistance. In life-threatening situations, call 000 (triple zero).