Thousands Experiencing Electricity in Queensland and Victoria Following Intense Storms
Approximately twenty-five thousand homes in southeastern Queensland woke up without power on the start of the week after intense storm systems impacted the area, producing powerful gusts reaching 109km/h.
Large Ice Stones and Extensive Destruction
Homeowners witnessed substantial frozen pellets as large as 7 centimeters in particular locations. The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed that multiple regions across the state had been affected by significant hail.
Today's weather system has severely damaged our power system!
Utility workers were working to restore energy supply throughout the affected regions, with nearly 70 crews activated to handle the widespread outages.
Southern State's Storm Challenges
Simultaneously, approximately 1,000 households in Victoria also faced power outages after Melbourne saw its heaviest rainfall in 18 months.
State Emergency Services responded to 598 emergency reports across the state, mainly for property damage but also for downed trees and water accumulation.
Most Impacted Areas
- Werribee - recorded significant storm damage
- Hoppers Crossing area - various assistance requests
- Wyndham region - over 175 help reports
At one point on the previous day, in excess of 28k power users in Victoria were without power.
Weather Forecast
Damp conditions were predicted to continue along large portions of Queensland's east this next several days as a low-pressure trough continued to draw in moisture against the coastal areas.
Tuesday was predicted as the wettest day, with continued thunderstorm potential predicted across various areas of both regions.
Health Warning
Public health experts warned that there was an higher risk of epidemic thunderstorm asthma across the countryside regions, especially given the current weather patterns.
This alert comes after past events where similar conditions led to significant health impacts in the state.