- Heavy thunderstorms forecast for Christmas Eve
- NSW, Queensland and Victoria in the line of fire
NSW, Queensland and Victoria could experience severe thunderstorms on Christmas Eve, with residents told to prepare for the possibility of hail, flash flooding and heavy rain.
There are major concerns about storms for 'the vast majority of NSW' and Queensland, stretching all the way from Mackay to the south-east of the state.
Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Angus Hines said the activity was expected to peak on Sunday afternoon.
“The specific area where we are likely to see severe thunderstorms is around south-east Queensland, including the Brisbane region and north-eastern NSW,” he said.
“We could see some of those thunderstorms become very large and very intense, potentially causing damage with destructive wind gusts, heavy to locally intense rainfall and large or even giant hail like we saw yesterday.”
NSW, Queensland and Victoria could experience severe thunderstorms on Christmas Eve, with residents told to prepare for the possibility of hail, flash flooding and heavy rain
On Sunday morning, BOM issued a severe thunderstorm warning for parts of central Queensland, with the risk of damaging winds, heavy rain and large hail.
This follows a wave of severe storms on Saturday, with high temperatures fueling weather activity.
The current warning applies to areas in the southern Darling Downs and Granite Belt district, but the weather authority said activity is likely to move eastwards in the coming hours.
In NSW, showers and severe thunderstorms will mainly occur in the central and eastern interior, with lighter storms forecast near the coast and in the far west.
Up to 30mm of rain is forecast for Sydney on Sunday, with the chance of showers decreasing overnight.
Massive storms are forecast for Christmas Eve, with grim weather a departure from the characteristic end-of-year heatwave
The Bureau warned that a low-pressure system developing on the NSW-Victoria border will drag the Christmas Eve storm risk “over much of Victoria”, bringing wet weather during the day.
Melbourne's Carols by Candlelight is also facing a possible washout, with a high chance of showers and a possible thunderstorm for the late afternoon and evening. The outdoor event kicks off from 8pm at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, with organizers confident the show will go ahead rain, hail or shine.
The Bureau warned that a low-pressure system developing on the NSW-Victoria border will drag storm risk “over much of Victoria” on Christmas Eve, bringing wet weather during the day.
“Showers naturally tend to be a bit spotty and variable – so there's still a chance we might get the carolers in a dry spot, but there is a risk of showers in Melbourne City at that time of day,” said Mr. Hines. While eastern states could experience a wet Christmas, multiple severe heatwave warnings remain in force for Western Australia.
The Bureau has issued a warning for the Pilbara, Gascoyne, North Interior and South Interior districts, where temperatures could reach 45 degrees Celsius.
The warning currently applies until Boxing Day.