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SIGNIFICANT WEATHER - FEBRUARY 1999
Tropical cyclone Rona and another low resulted in two heavy rainfall events in Queensland during February, causing major flooding.
Queensland On the 11th Tropical cyclone Rona made landfall just to the north of Cow Bay near the Daintree River Mouth. The main wind damage extended from Newell Beach to Cape Tribulation with the major damage between Cape Kimberley and Cape Tribulation. Some trees in the Cape Tribulation area which survived the 1934 cyclone in that area were felled by Rona. The maximum wind speeds were recorded by the Low Isle automatic weather station with 10 minute average winds to 132 km/h and a maximum wind gust of 158 km/h. The lowest pressure of 983.0 hPa was recorded at Low Isle. A storm surge of 1 metre was recorded at low tide at Port Douglas and a 1.4 metre surge was recorded at the mouth of the Mossman River. Major flooding occurred between Cairns and Townsville. There was major damage to crops between Townsville and Cairns and major damage to crops and infrastructure in the Douglas Shire. Tropical cyclone Frank formed near New Caledonia on the 19th and moved toward Queensland and weakened to a low on the 22nd. A large high over the Tasman Sea and the low drifting closer to the coast caused strong winds and large swells on to the southern coast until the low moved off to the southeast to be near Lord Howe Island on the 24th.
South Australia The Ngarkat bushfires which started on the 27th of January were finally brought under control on the 2nd of February. Strong northerly winds assisted in turning the fire back on itself. The total area burnt was 100,000 hectares including almost half of the Ngarkat Conservation Park, a quarter of Scorpion Springs Conservation Park and 13,000 hectares of the Big Desert Wilderness area in Victoria. On the 16th a large grass fire 5 kilometres north of Callendale in the lower southeast of the state was caused by a slasher. The fire burnt 500 hectares of stubble, scrub and grassland as well as 20-30 kilometres of fencing. There was no damage to stock, machinery or farm buildings in the fire which took about 3 hours to control.
Tasmania On the 7th strong winds from a low pressure system that developed close to the south of the State caused property damage, power blackouts and cancellations of events across the state.
Queensland A tree was blown onto a house and another into a front yard in the Redcliffe area on the 1st. On the 26th St George recorded a wind gust to 102 km/h in a severe thunderstorm. Large hail was reported, the business centre endured localised flooding and trees were blown across the roads and onto houses. New South Wales At Lawrence (Northern Rivers) 2cm hail was reported on the 2nd. On the 26th at Armidale (Northern Tablelands) 28mm of rain fell in 20 minutes. Victoria On the 1st large hail to 2cm was reported at Jamieson. There was some tree damage. On the 6th severe thunderstorms occurred in the Northern Country and the Northeast districts. Severe damaging winds were reported at Rushworth, Tatura, Benalla, Seymour Violet Town and the Waranga Basin. Severe gusts to 100km/h were recorded on Port Phillip Bay. On the 11th there was heavy general rainfall in the Western and Wimmera districts. Rainfall rates in excess of the 1 in 10 year event were recorded at Ararat, Beulah and Mortlake. A woman was injured at Williamstown when hit by lightning. On the 12th thunderstorms with heavy rain which led to flash flooding were reported at Geelong, Leopold and Hamilton. At Wickliffe (Western district) 88mm of rain was recorded. In the Murray Valley crops were lost due to heavy rain. On the 23rd slow moving storms in Gippsland caused local minor flooding. The main street of Bairnsdale experienced minor flooding when a thunderstorm produced 26mm of rain in an hour. On the 28th severe thunderstorms occurred in the Melbourne metropolitan area and West Gippsland. Heavy rain was recorded at Dunns Hill, Coldstream, Powelltown, Churchill and Buln Buln (56mm in 45 minutes). Large hail to 2cm was reported at Churchill. A funnel cloud was observed in the Mt Dandenong area. Western Australia A maximum wind gust of 107km/h was recorded at Eucla on the 1st as a severe storm passed close to the town. There was damage to trees. Severe downbursts associated with a thunderstorm caused damage to trees near Kings Rocks (approximately 50 kilometres northeast of Hyden in the eastern agricultural area) on the 13th. Many trees were twisted off at the base and some were blown several metres. The winds also damaged a number of paddock fences. Damage was concentrated along a 20 - 200 metres wide track and ran from northwest to southeast. Hail 2cm in diameter and a total of 46.8 mm of rain was recorded. Northern Territory On the 6th a gust 87 km/h was reported in a thunderstorm at Lajamanu (Wave Hill) in the Victoria River region. No damage was reported. On the 11th a gust of 100 km/h was recorded at Tindal during a thunderstorm. Large trees were felled or damaged in nearby bushland over an area of several kilometres.
Queensland From the 8th-10th a small low developed near Double Island Point. In the lead up rains a girl drowned at Samford on the 6th. A man drowned as he and a woman in a campervan were swept into a creek at Kennilworth when a bank collapsed on the afternoon of the 8th . Also on the same day on the Sunshine Coast, flooding and landslides closed dozens of roads. Wind blew power lines down causing blackouts and several houses had roof damage. Landslides affected the Obi Range Road between Mapleton and Kenilworth, Jimna Creek Road, Cedar Pocket Road and Tin Can Bay Road. Kilcoy was isolated by floodwaters. At Brookfield a school girl was rescued from Amogill Creek. In the Valley a landslide closed a road. The road to Bribie Island was cut and fallen trees cut several roads. Double Island point recorded a gust of 117 km/h and Cape Moreton recorded a gust of 104 km/h and a peak wave height of 8 metres was measured off Main Beach, Southport. On the 9th 24 hour rainfall totals to 9am were recorded at Maleny 404mm, Mary Cairncross 370mm and Nambour 332mm. In Brisbane, Strathpine recorded 182mm of rain. A boy was drowned when he was swept into a storm water drain at Palmwoods. Another boy was rescued after being swept from a park in Nambour. A man was drowned when he was swept over a weir while boogie-boarding at Caboolture and a man was trapped by the rapidly rising South Pine River at Albany Creek and drowned. North of Brisbane 160 roads were cut, the Bruce Highway being the worse affected with the road cut in several key locations and power was disrupted in southeast Queensland. A man drowned in a creek on the Gold Coast. On the 10th a man was drowned in a creek just outside Conondale. The Mary River at Gympie peaked at 21.95 metres which is the highest level this century, 150 businesses and 20 homes were inundated. Flooding occurred in several rivers: Maroochy River On the 1st following heavy rainfall on the Sunshine Coast and adjacent hinterland, moderate flooding occurred in the headwater streams in the Nambour/Yandina/Eumundi areas with minor flooding experienced in the Maroochy River and tributary creeks. Further heavy rainfall on the 8th resulted in widespread minor flooding on the Sunshine Coast with moderate to major flooding in the North and South Maroochy Rivers and Yandina Creek and minor flooding in the Noosa River. Mary River Heavy rainfall in the upper reaches of Six Mile Creek on the 2nd caused moderate flooding at Cooran with minor flooding occurring downstream from Dagun Pocket to Gympie. Renewed heavy rainfall on the 8th resulted in rapid rises with moderate to major flooding in most streams from Kenilworth to Gympie, with a peak of 21.95 metres at Gympie on the morning of the 10th causing major flooding. This was the highest flood since January 1898. Moderate to major flooding extended down to Maryborough with a peak of 8.75 metres reached on the morning of the 12th causing moderate flooding. Moonie River Widespread rainfall of up to 100mm over 2 days resulted in rises to minor flood height in the upper reaches of the catchment on the 2nd. Minor to moderate flooding continued downstream to Nindigully over the next two weeks. Fitzroy River Basin On the 2nd widespread rainfall resulted in significant rises in the Dawson River and tributaries above Taroom. Minor flooding developed downstream of Taroom to newlands over the next week. Rapid rises occurred in the Connors River and its tributaries following rainfalls up to 110mm on the 11th. Minor flooding developed downstream to Pink Lagoon over the next day. Condamine/Balonne River On the 2nd following heavy isolated rainfall, major flooding occurred at the Warra Kogan Road Bridge. Moderate flooding developed downstream of Warra Kogan Road Bridge and major flooding occurred in the Balonne River at Warkon. Minor to moderate flooding extended downstream to Dirranbandi where a peak was reached on the 15th. Brisbane River Significant river rises in the Stanley and Brisbane River and tributaries above Wivenhoe Dam resulted from heavy rainfall on the 8th. Moderate flooding developed in the Stanley River and major flooding in the Brisbane River above Wivenhoe Dam. Releases from Wivenhoe Dam commenced on the 9th causing closures of low level crossings along the Brisbane River downstream of Wivenhoe Dam, with minor flooding between Wivenhoe Dam and Mount Crosby. The same rainfall system caused rapid rises with moderate flooding in the Lockyer Creek, Warrill Creek and the Bremer River. The Bremer River at Ipswich peaked just below the minor flood height on the evening of the 9th. Tully River Heavy rainfall on the 11th caused rapid stream rises and major flooding downstream to Euramo with a peak of 9.1 metres on the 13th. Barron River Following heavy rainfall on the 11th rapid rises occurred in rivers and streams from Mareeba to the Barron delta. Major flooding developed from Mareeba to Bilwon and in the Barron River delta on the northern side of Cairns, the highest since January 1979. Johnstone River Heavy rainfall on the 11th led to major flooding developing in the North Johnstone River and South Johnstone River downstream to Innisfail. An initial peak was reached at Innisfail on the 12th, with additional rain causing another lower peak on the 13th. The peak of the 12th was the highest since February 1986. Herbert River Heavy rainfall in the middle of the catchment on the 12th caused rapid stream rises down to Ingham, with major flooding between Gleneagle and Halifax. Don River Heavy overnight rainfall on the 16th caused rapid rises in the Don River to Bowen. River levels peaked at Bowen on the 16th causing moderate flooding. Western Australia A low remaining near the Pilbara coast brought heavy rains to the area between the 9th and the 13th with several localities recording daily totals of excess of 50mm. The rising waters covered a number of roads in the region and one man drowned as he attempted to cross the Fortescue River on the 12th.
Highest Daily Minimum Temperature for February
Previous Years of
Station Actual Date Highest Year Record
C C
Queensland
Te Kowai 28.5 26 27.5 1998 34
Lowest Daily Minimum Temperature for February
Previous Years of
Station Actual Date Lowest Year Record
C C
Queensland
Mount Isa A/P 14.6 20 15.8 1973 33
Northern Territory
Kulgera 11.0 8 12.5 1991 17
Pirlangimpi 18.0 21 20.0 1992 19
Highest Monthly Rainfall on Record for February
Previous Years of
Station Actual Highest Year Record
mm mm
Queensland
Jimna Forestry 486.0 409.0 1954 73
Lindfield 537.0 528.3 1972 77
Nambour DPI 922.8 860.4 1992 48
Tasmania
Cape Bruny L/H 235.8 155.9 1964 103
Dover 163.6 163.4 1964 48
Franklin 165.0 137.7 1964 88
Levendale 125.4 116.6 1996 48
Bushy Park 133.2 109.1 1998 93
Lake Margaret 364.8 263.2 1993 45
Strathgordon Village
244.8 239.6 1998 30
Zeehan 307.4 244.2 1993 30
Victoria
Caramut PO 82.8 80.3 1973 41
Western Australia
Broome 496.8 430.6 1995 59
Northern Territory
Pirlangimpi 779.1 656.8 1991 32
Channel Island 538.4 474.2 1938 25
Highest Daily Rainfall on Record for Any Month
Previous Years of
Station Actual Date Highest Year Record
mm mm
Queensland
Jimna Forestry 302.6 9 256.0 3/1955 73
Kandanga PO 320.0 9 300.2 2/1992 83
Kenilworth Elizabeth St
295.0 9 279.0 4/1989 97
Lindfield 237.8 9 236.0 3/1955 77
Somerset Dam 276.2 9 248.9 2/1956 64
Highest Daily Rainfall on Record for February
Previous Years of
Station Actual Date Highest Year Record
mm mm
Queensland
Cairns A/P 296.0 12 286.3 1967 58
Dimbulah Brickley St
126.0 12 105.7 1945 69
Eveleigh Stn 197.0 15 151.2 1981 60
Mareeba 244.0 15 153.2 1967 48
North Head 114.0 16 90.0 1995 30
Ravenshoe PO 354.0 12 165.6 1942 72
Tinaroo Falls Dam
280.0 12 162.0 1977 46
Wrotham Park 140.0 12 116.0 1992 50
Borumba Dam 247.4 9 187.4 1992 40
Broadleigh Downs
211.2 16 158.8 1968 38
Crows Nest 211.2 9 153.4 1893 107
Duaringa PO 209.0 26 190.2 1954 114
Haden PO 112.0 9 102.4 1928 74
Lindfield 237.8 9 191.8 1931 77
Peachester Woodford Rd
365.0 9 332.2 1931 84
Pechey Forestry172.8 9 125.5 1959 73
Somerset Dam 276.2 9 248.9 195* 64
Toogoolawah PO 190.4 9 144.3 1931 91
South Australia
Braemar 60.6 12 40.3 1972 35
Northern Territory
Pirlangimpi 118.1 27 111.0 1983 32
Note: Some statistical records mentioned in this report are based on data that have yet to be fully validated.
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