Mount Isa said welcome to the wet season this afternoon (Thursday December 8) in a storm that came with little warning.
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There was a storm warning for the Channel Country and the south-west but none for the north-west.
According to the bureau there was only 30% chance of rain in the Mount Isa district today though they did warn of a “chance of a thunderstorm”.
Some chance! The rain arrived just before 4pm and gradually built up in intensity. By 4.15pm motorists on Marian St had to drive with lights and watch for flash flooding.
It was still raining heavily at the time of writing and reports are coming on of power outages in parts of the city.
Ergon say over 800 customers have been affected in areas including Winston, Mornington, Mount Isa CBD, Menzies, Ryan, Breakaway, Sunset and Lanskey.
Rain totals are not yet available but it is certain to be the first total greater than 1 millimetre since November 8.
The forecast for tomorrow is partly cloudy with a medium (60%) chance of showers south of Mount Isa, slight (30%) chance elsewhere.
There is also the “chance of a thunderstorm” later in the day which, after today, we might need to treat more seriously.
Similar conditions are expected for the weekend so it might pay to bring a brolly to the night markets in Mount Isa on Saturday.
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
