Heavy rain and thunderstorms are bringing widespread flooding to New South Wales and parts of Queensland.
The deluge hit Sydney on Saturday afternoon, as residents were told to brace for conditions to intensify throughout the night.
A damaging trough in New South Wales, first unleashed across the state’s west, left several regions awash.
Despite only being October, Dubbo has now recorded its wettest year in 49 years, with about 882mm recorded up until 4pm today.
While at Bathurst, racing on Mount Panorama was thrown into chaos, after the Top-10 shootout was cancelled due to the torrential downpour.
The regional city has copped more than a month’s worth of rain in a few days.
There are more than 60 flood warnings in place across NSW, covering western parts of the state, in the Central West, Hunter, Hawkesbury-Nepean, the South Coast and the Illawarra.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said on Saturday afternoon the state has a situation where dams and rivers are full.
“With heavy rain expected, we ask everybody to continue to be cautious,” he said.
“If those flood warnings are in place, please continue to follow instructions, be prepared to be ready if an evacuation is needed.
Hundreds of calls for help as heavy rain moves through NSW
“Particularly on roads, not just in Sydney but right across the state, please be careful.”
However the worst may still be yet to come, with another system expected to move through the state on Wednesday.
“We’re only eight days into the storm season and unfortunately, we’re seeing flooding continue across NSW,” emergency services minister Steph Cooke said.
“It’s expected to do so for weeks and months ahead.”
Showers to ease briefly
The latest burst of storms is being caused by a developing low pressure system, which will endure well into the evening before dissipating over Sunday and Monday.
Meteorologist Dean Narramore said the trough is being fuelled by tropical moisture, with heavy falls expected to exacerbate flash flooding.
“Widespread areas particularly for our flood-affected areas of inland NSW, (could get) 30-50mm with isolated falls of 80-100mm possible,” he said.
“Severe weather warnings current for heavy rainfall and damaging winds from Newcastle all the way down to Ulladulla.”
“Unfortunately the next weather system [arrives] Wednesday to Thursday with a burst of widespread heavy storms,” he said.
Narramore’s warning comes as residents near the Hawkesbury-Nepean Rivers face a possible fifth flood in 18 months.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said there’s a minor, to moderate risk of flooding along those communities.
Weatherzone said this latest round or rain and storms is due to a cold front that’s “tapped into abundant tropical moisture, which had already made its way south from northern Australia.”.
“The situation will probably become extremely serious on the weekend, with heavy rain again forecast across a huge area, particularly on Saturday, and particularly north of the Murray River,” the weather service added.
Weather warnings are in place for parts of Queensland, with heavy rainfall possible in areas including Maranoa Warrego and the Central West districts, extending to the Darling Downs.
There’s also a risk of minor to moderate flooding across a number of catchments across western and south-western Queensland as the system pushes east.
Areas around Bulloo and the Paroo River are of particular concern.
Clean up begins in Victoria
Eastern Australia is currently in the grips of its third consecutive third La Nina , which is tipped to weaken early 2023.
Meanwhile, Victoria SES continues to clean-up after a fierce storm lashed the city.
State Agency Commander Geb Abbott said Victoria has “seen the worst” of the rain but added flooding is still possible as water flows down catchments.
“Calls for both flooding, building damage and trees down,” she said.
“Unfortunately, we’re having to respond to vehicles that have been stuck in floodwater.
“A reminder for all areas that are experiencing flooding – please do not drive into floodwater, it may be one of the last things you do.
“We are still seeing water coming through the damp catchments. Flooding will be experienced in many areas. Crews are still out ready and prepared to respond and still engaging with the communities still likely to experience impact.”