Flood watch areas for areas of northern and inland Queensland, with some areas registering over 300mm in less than a day.
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00:00It's been another wet 24 hours for parts of northeastern Queensland, with over 300
00:06mm recorded at Hamilton Island up until 9 o'clock this morning, and well over 200 mm
00:12for parts of the Cassowary Coast.
00:14Significant flooding is ongoing and remains our primary concern today and over the coming
00:19days.
00:20A number of flood warnings are still in place between Cairns and down as far south as St
00:24Lawrence or so.
00:26For the most part, flooding is in an easing phase, but we may still see some localised
00:30renewed rises across inland parts, particularly where severe thunderstorms bring some heavy
00:35falls on a local scale.
00:38A major flood warning remains in place for the Herbert River catchment, with minor to
00:43moderate flooding elsewhere.
00:44Most notably, moderate flood warnings are in place for the Ross River catchment and
00:48the Lower Burdekin.
00:50We also have extensive flood watch areas now current for northern inland and central parts
00:56of Queensland.
00:58These flood watch areas are flagging the developing risk of rainfall and flooding across these
01:03parts over the coming days.
01:05Now our thresholds for flooding are much lower across these drier inland areas compared to
01:10the wet coastal parts, which means we need far less rain in the gauges to see significant
01:15flooding impacts developing.
01:17Such impacts include roads being cut or reduced to four wheel drive access only as water moves
01:22over those roads, and at worst we may even see some townships isolated as those roads
01:27become affected.
01:30Now rainfall building through those inland areas is largely going to be driven by areas
01:34of low pressure.
01:35A low pressure trough and at times the monsoon trough moving over parts of northern Queensland.
01:41These areas of low pressure are dragging in significant moisture from the tropics and
01:45feeding it into any showers and storms that develop.
01:49And we certainly are expecting widespread showers and thunderstorms across much of northern
01:54and central Queensland over the coming days, pushing into early next week as well.
02:00At times we may see rain areas and severe thunderstorms developing which could bring
02:04some locally heavier falls, particularly about parts of the north tropical coast.
02:09Now our highest rainfall totals are most likely about that southern side of the low pressure
02:15trough areas.
02:16We can see that reflected in our rainfall totals out to the end of Saturday.
02:21They really build quite quickly across that southern side of the low pressure trough including
02:26the coast between Cairns and Mackay, particularly in that Friday to Sunday period, but also
02:31pushing inland to touch parts of the northern goldfields and upper flinders, the central
02:36highlands and coalfields, and the central west districts as well.
02:39Of course the exact locations for the highest falls will depend on those areas of low pressure.
02:45Where they sit and how strong they are at any given times.
02:49Severe thunderstorms across these areas over the coming days may also enhance rainfall
02:55totals on a local scale and could lead to flash flooding in some parts.
02:59It's essential for communities right across northern Queensland to be aware of this building
03:03risk over the coming days, particularly those in the new flood watch areas inland.
03:09It's also worth noting that we may see our flood watch areas further extended to the
03:13west, pushing into eastern parts of the Northern Territory if that flood and rain risk starts
03:19to move outside of Queensland.
03:22As this risk continues to unfold over the coming days, it's essential to stay up to
03:26date with the latest forecasts and warnings via the Bureau's website and our BOM Weather
03:31app.
03:32You can also find updates via our social media.
03:35Stay safe and we'll catch you in the next update.