Forecasters are warning of thunderstorms ‘coming to life’ in eastern Australia for much of the coming week.
But across northern and western Australia it is the prolonged heat that is the problem, with Perth possibly becoming the first capital city to experience a severe heatwave this season.
Sky News meteorologist Alison Osborne said southern Queensland and the northern lapel region of New South Wales would experience thunderstorms that could lead to flash flooding.
Brisbane, Sydney and Canberra are all prone to thunderstorms early in the week.
Forecasters warn of thunderstorms ‘coming to life’ in eastern Australia for much of next week
Wild storms are forecast over parts of southern Queensland and the northern rivers region of NSW this week
The forecast comes after the eastern regions of the NSW-Queensland border were bombarded by golf ball-sized hailstones in midweek.
It is likely to be welcomed in fire-ravaged parts of NSW and Queensland in the coming weeks.
“Last week has been marked by downpours in the outback… and that is expected every day for the next week,” Ms Osborne said.
‘Winds coming from the Coral and Tasman Seas; they carry moisture to that area of low pressure.
You have a recipe for widespread showers and thunderstorms – and that pattern won’t change much over the next week.”
From Monday, showers and storms will concentrate over eastern Queensland, south of Bundaberg
This week, more than a month’s worth of rain has fallen in parts of central Australia, including 36 millimeters in Alice Springs in just 24 hours.
Much of the precipitation in the coming days could be associated with storms, with damaging winds also a threat.
The drama will miss Melbourne completely, but the city will see gray and gloomy skies for most of the week.
Residents in southern Queensland and the Murray Darling Basin will experience widespread falls of 60 to 100 millimeters over the next week, with some areas reaching as much as 200 mm.
A period of ‘sustained heat’ is expected to continue across much of northern Australia over the next week
Ms Osborne said rain was likely to intensify this weekend, but southeastern Australia would remain cooler and much of the rest of the country would experience “extended heat”.
A persistent heatwave is expected to continue across northern Australia, with temperatures likely to dip into the low 40s.
Heatwave conditions along the west coast will extend as far south as Perth from Sunday to next Thursday.
“This means Perth could be the first capital to experience a severe heatwave this season,” Ms Osbourne said.