Close to 25,000 Experiencing Power in South-East Queensland and Victorian Regions Following Powerful Storms
Nearly twenty-five thousand residences in southeastern Queensland woke up experiencing outages on the start of the week after powerful weather events swept through the region, producing powerful gusts topping 109 kilometers per hour.
Massive Hailstones and Broad Impact
Residents witnessed large ice chunks as large as 7cm in some areas. The Bureau of Meteorology announced that various areas across Queensland had been hit with significant hail.
This afternoon's storm has heavily impacted our power system!
Response teams were working to restore electricity service throughout the damaged zones, with dozens of response units deployed to address the widespread outages.
Victoria's Weather Woes
Simultaneously, approximately 1,000 households in Victoria also encountered electricity disruptions after Melbourne saw its wettest day in over 500 days.
Rescue organizations responded to 598 calls for help across the area, mostly for structural issues but also for fallen timber and inundation.
Most Impacted Locations
- Werribee region - experienced substantial storm damage
- Hoppers Crossing area - numerous assistance requests
- Wyndham area - 179 help reports
During the peak on the previous day, over 28k power users in Victoria were without power.
Climate Outlook
Humid circumstances were forecast to persist along large portions of eastern Queensland this week as a low-pressure trough continued to attract humidity against the shoreline.
The following day was forecast to be the wettest day, with continued thunderstorm potential expected across multiple regions of both areas.
Safety Concern
Health officials cautioned that there was an increased chance of thunderstorm-induced asthma across the countryside regions, particularly given the current weather patterns.
This alert comes after past events where analogous circumstances led to substantial respiratory problems in the state.