South Coast NSW inundated with over 200mm of rain as storm peaks
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ABC News
37 minutes ago
- ABC News
High rainfall totals and thunderstorms forecast for south-east Queensland
A low-pressure system trough is expected to deepen today, bringing the possibility of high rainfall and thunderstorms in south-east Queensland. Forecasters said the Gold Coast, Brisbane, Sunshine Coast and Darling Downs should expect more dreary conditions. Morgan Pumpa from the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said the focus would be on the border ranges from Goondiwindi across to the Gold Coast. The chance of the heaviest rainfall and thunderstorms is on the Gold Coast, but Brisbane will experience shower and thunderstorm activity with rainfall between 7 and 40 millimetres likely. "It will depend on thunderstorm activity, but at Coolangatta we have a forecast of 15–70mm on Thursday alone, and 3–30mm on Friday," Ms Pumpa said. Areas around the Darling Downs and Granite Belt can also expect widespread rain, which could lead to river rises. "It's really important for people living in these areas to look at the radar and keep an eye on the shower activity, and stay up to date with all the latest warnings," Ms Pumpa said. "There's probably more of a concern over the border in New South Wales for flooding conditions, but for Queensland, we're focused on severe thunderstorm warnings." Senior meteorologist Angus Hines said the wet conditions were unusual. "Some places have already had above 50mm of rain, and when we add in what we're expecting during Thursday, we could see some spots over 100mm for the week, which is quite a wet week at any time of year, but particularly at this time of year." Last year, the BOM recorded 71mm of rain through August for parts of the south-east. Beyond the southern towns, Mr Hines said cloudy skies and some spotty showers were forecast from the Wide Bay to Mackay through Thursday. "You might see a small amount of rainfall in those districts without it really tipping the rain gauges over more than about one or two millimetres," he said. "We have a fine, clear and sunny day across central and western parts of Queensland." He said temperatures would be relatively cool across the south of the state and warm in the north. "It's been a cold couple of days around Brisbane [and] it's going to be on the cooler side of average again," Mr Hines said. "Western and northern parts of the state are a fair bit warmer with those clearer skies and sunshine, and in fact a lot of places in northern Queensland tending to be one or two degrees warmer than average for this time of year." Mr Hines said the rain would clear during Friday. "It could be a wet start to the day, but by about lunchtime it looks like most of that rain has gone," he said. "The rest of the state is heading for a pretty dry day." He said a sunny weekend was on the cards for most of the state. "A couple of showers are possible around the Capricornia and the Central Coast, but really minimal rainfall forecast anywhere across Queensland this weekend," Mr Hines said. "We're expecting to see far more sunshine than cloud cover."
ABC News
37 minutes ago
- ABC News
Small hive beetle decimates bee populations on mid north coast before spring
Despite the cooler weather, Chris Tejcek's small-scale permaculture farm is usually buzzing with bees throughout winter. But this year, he has struggled to find even one at his property at Beechwood, on the New South Wales mid north coast. "We're in a quieter period … but the way that our property is set up, we've got a lot of fruit trees and Australian natives, most of which are still in full bloom … we've normally got bees everywhere," he said. All five of Mr Tejcek's hives were abandoned after they were infested with small hive beetle, an introduced insect that feeds on pollen, honey and dead bees, leaving behind a slimy residue that drives out bees. In July, he burnt the infested frames to help prevent the beetle from spreading further. "That's a really hard thing to do, to just stand there when you've [put] an incredible amount of work in establishing and building colonies," he said. Small hive beetle has been in Australia since 2002, but Mr Tejcek said this year was the worst he had seen. The situation on Mr Tejcek's property has been mirrored across the NSW mid north coast, where the combination of varroa mite and repeated floods has left hives vulnerable. Hastings Valley Amateur Beekeepers Association biosecurity officer Leon Carle said the conditions had created a "perfect storm". "The bees usually manage [the beetles] and lock them up in what we call beetle jails … they force the beetles in there," Mr Carle said. "But with the varroa, it weakens them … so the beetle gets out [and] the bees either die with it or they abscond." Of 22 club members surveyed, 73 per cent of their combined 150 hives had been lost this year, to floods, varroa mite or small hive beetle. Technical specialist for honey bees at the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development Elizabeth Frost said beekeepers north of the NSW Central Coast were reporting unseasonably high numbers of small hive beetle. "We think that … elevated numbers are a result of beetles being able to reproduce in these hives that are dying in feral locations and also potentially neglected hives or any hives that have died in a flooding event," she said. Ms Frost was concerned small hive beetle populations could explode further as the weather warmed up, with one brood frame able to yield about 6,000 larvae. "Bee reproduction increases, all manner of insect and arthropod reproduction increases so beetles, varroa, we have to keep all these things in mind … as the season warms up." She said there were steps beekeepers could take to protect their hives. "Having really strong, healthy bee colonies, having young and productive queens, fixing up any colonies that the queen dies in and keeping a tight colony [will help]," she said. "Worst comes to worst, there are mechanical and chemical treatment methods … that work really well at killing small hive beetle." Ms Frost was confident increased beetle numbers could be mitigated if beekeepers across Australia remained diligent with varroa mite treatments, with high levels of varroa found in areas reporting major losses from small hive beetle. However, Mr Carle said varroa mite infestations in feral hives complicated treatment options, making it hard to maintain strong hives. "You can treat for varroa and have very low numbers but within two weeks you've got extraordinary numbers of varroa again," he said. "Simply because they've been out robbing out the hives in the bush … so all the varroa there waiting, jump on the bees [and] come back to your hive."
ABC News
2 hours ago
- ABC News
Two men missing after car crashes into river near Wisemans Ferry
Two men are missing after a car crashed into a river in northern Sydney on Wednesday night. Emergency services were called about 11:50pm to the Macdonald River, near Settlers Road, St Albans, about 20 kilometres north of Wisemans Ferry, following reports a car had entered the river. Officers attached to Hawkesbury Police Area Command found that a car had crashed into the river before one passenger exited the vehicle and reached the riverbank. The man, in his 20s, was assessed by paramedics at the scene but did not require further treatment. Police have been told two other men were in the car at the time and are yet to be accounted for. The State Emergency Service (SES) and NSW Rural Fire Service have been involved in the search for the two men. Residents across New South Wales have been warned to prepare for more wet weather with a complex system expected to hit the state from Thursday. The heaviest falls are due on Thursday morning, with isolated showers in some areas potentially reaching up to 120 millimetres. The Bureau of Meteorology said the exact location of the system was hard to predict. However, minor to moderate flooding is possible for the Mid North Coast, Northern Rivers, Northern Tablelands, North-West Slopes and Plains, parts of the Hunter and parts of Greater Sydney.
