Pilbara hit by heaviest rainfall in 50 years, tropical surge to bring rainfall to more than 80% of Australia
Following record-breaking rains in Western Australia’s Pilbara on Saturday, September 21, 2024, a tropical system is expected to deliver widespread rainfall across 80 % of Australia this week.
Image credit: JMA/Himawari-9, RAMMB/CIRA, The Watchers. Acquired at 00:50 UTC on September 24, 2024
- A tropical moisture surge is expected to bring rain to more than 80 % of Australia this week, impacting all states and territories with potential thunderstorms and heavy downpours.
- Western Australia’s Pilbara and Kimberley regions experienced their heaviest rainfall in over 50 years, breaking numerous wettest September day records.
- Some areas that have experienced abnormally dry winters, particularly in central and southern Australia, are expected to receive much-needed rainfall in the coming days.
After the record-breaking rains that struck Western Australia’s Pilbara on Saturday, more than 80 % of Australia is expected to receive rain this week due to a tropical moisture surge spreading across the continent.
The desert region of Pilbara and Kimberley had already experienced around 20 – 50 mm (0.8 – 2 inches) of rain in 24 hours from Saturday to 09:00 local time (LT) on Sunday, September 22. This was the heaviest rainfall to occur in the region in over 50 years.
Several records for the wettest September day were broken on Saturday. Newman recorded 38 mm (1.5 inches) of rain, the highest in 59 years; Wyndham 24 mm (0.9 inches), the highest in 55 years; Argyle 23 mm (0.9 inches), the highest in 39 years; and Fitzroy Crossing 18 mm (0.7 inches), the highest in 50 years.
The mining camps of Fortescue Dave Forest with 61 mm (2.4 inches), Coondewanna with 57 mm (2.2 inches), and Christmas Creek with 53 mm (2.1 inches) were the wettest locations in the Pilbara. The remote community of Yulmbu recorded the heaviest falls across Kimberley with 65 mm (2.6 inches) in the 24 hours leading up to 09:00 LT on Sunday.
Currently, a slow-moving upper-level trough is expected to bring clouds, rain, and thunderstorms, gradually spreading over the continent. This system is forecasted to bring heavy rains across all the states and territories of Australia in the next seven days.
After rain and some thunderstorms in central and southern Australia on Monday and Tuesday, September 23 and 24, the system is forecast to move to the southeast on Wednesday, September 25, and reach the eastern states by Thursday, September 26.
Some of the rain will fall in regions that experienced abnormally dry winters this year.
According to some computer models, parts of eastern Australia might see showers and thunderstorms on Friday, September 27, and through the weekend due to a lingering low-pressure trough.
Another frontal system could cause showers and thunderstorms over Western Australia and South Australia from Friday to Sunday, September 29, although this requires further evaluation.
References:
1 Rain to soak most of Australia this week – here’s where it will fall – WeatherZone – September 23, 2024
2 Desert drenching in the Pilbara – WeatherZone – September 22, 2024
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
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