Australia Faces Extreme Weather: Torrential Downpours Follow Record-Breaking Heatwave

In a remarkable weather event, Arkaroola, located in South Australia’s northern Flinders Ranges, experienced a deluge that accounted for 40% of its annual rainfall in just a single day. According to Weatherzone, the area was soaked with an astonishing 100.6 mm of rain within the 24 hours leading up to 9 am yesterday.

Meanwhile, Dubbo, situated in New South Wales’ Central West, was relieved to receive 39 mm of rain. This significant rainfall was especially welcome following an extended period of drier-than-normal conditions that had persisted since October of last year.

Across Victoria, rain fell in most regions yesterday, with the central part of the state taking the heaviest hit from the cloud band. At least ten locations recorded 25 mm of rain.

The highest rainfall in Victoria was reported in Mena Park, near Ballarat, where 37 mm fell during the same 24-hour period.

In Queensland’s far southwest, Birdsville recorded 29 mm of rain in just one day. This amount surpassed any monthly total for the town since last autumn, highlighting the rarity of such an occurrence.

In the Northern Territory, typically-arid Alice Springs has posted five days with record-rainfall, where 66mm of rain soaked nearby Upper Bond Springs in the 24 hours to 9am today.

The moisture from the Indian Ocean has spread all the way to Tasmania, where most of the state received a light smattering of rain.

Showers and thunderstorms are expected to continue across most of the country in the coming days as they trend north.

The rain is unlikely to reach bushfire-stricken parts of South Australia and Victoria this week.

The wet weather system comes just over a week after south-eastern Australia sweltered in record temperatures.

Temperatures in the South Australian towns of Indamooka and Port Augusta reached 50 degrees, while temperatures in Victoria soared to their highest on record, with the mercury reaching 48.9 degrees in Hopetoun and Walpeup.

NEVER MISS A STORY: Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.