Queensland BOM forecasts heavy rainfall, severe storms and heatwave warnings

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

Queensland is set for an “outbreak of storms” that are expected to bring a “trifecta” of wind, rain, and hail across the state this week.

Southern and western parts of the state have been placed on flood watch, while the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has issued a severe heatwave warning for the Peninsula District in the north.

Senior forecaster Felim Hanniffy said are expecting a very activated and significant weather pattern to unfold across the state.

Mr Hanniffy said the weather system would start to develop in the west today and continue moving east over the coming days.

It is going to bring the risk of severe thunderstorm activity over multiple days initially in the west and interior, and then spreading slowly eastwards later in the week, he said.

Outback storms to be ‘on the higher end’

Mr Hanniffy said the far west parts of outback Channel Country and even the southern parts of the north-west district could see destructive severe thunderstorms on Tuesday.

Some of the storms in the far west could be more on the higher end variety… [with] locally destructive winds of intense rainfall and giant hail, he said.

The weather system is predicted to spread on Wednesday, bringing severe thunderstorm activity including strong winds, rain and hail into the northern, central and southern interiors.

The system will continue moving towards eastern and northern parts of the state on Thursday and Friday.

Increased risk of flash flooding

Mr Hanniffy said the central, southern and eastern areas of the state could be at risk of flash flooding as the system brings heavy rainfall in a short amount of time.

Obviously the flooding risk is elevated by the fact that everywhere is so saturated in light of very wet conditions we have had over the last several months, he said.

The BOM predicts the central and southern interiors could see accumulative rainfall of up to 100 millilitres on Wednesday and Thursday.

As the system moves to the east, Mr Hanniffy said up to 70mm of rain could be dumped in a “short duration”.

In the south east, between 20 and 40mm of rainfall is expected later in the week.

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