Oma disappointment
AS Cyclone Oma approached the coast, many in the Lockyer Valley and Somerset region watched, waited and hoped.
But those hopes were dashed as the system slowed and turned back on itself, taking its promised rain with it.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Kimba Wong said a high pressure system developed along the eastern coast which stopped the cyclone making landfall.
“A ridge of high pressure we had building up the coast … pushed (Cyclone Oma) further into the Coral Sea rather than allowing it to come closer to the coast,” Ms Wong said. Morton Vale farmer Brendan Dipple had been eagerly awaiting the rain from the cyclone. “We were certainly looking at it with a bit of hope,” Mr Dipple said.
“It’s been a long while since I felt that range of emotions where you look off into the distance and go, ‘Oh, there’s hope we might get something’.”
While it was bitterly disappointing to watch the system turn and disappear out to sea, he said that was simply the weather and there was no point complaining.
“That’s life. It’s just going to deliver what it’s going to deliver and you’ve just got to accept that and work with it,” he said.
With what many described as the best chance for decent rainfall in months fizzling out, farmers are looking towards a hard winter season with no soil moisture to speak of.
“We’re all starting to make decisions to cut back,” Mr Dipple said.
The high pressure ridge that killed off Oma will continue to dominate the weather in coming days.
❝ It’s been a long while since I felt that range of emotions where you look off into the distance and go, ‘Oh, there’s hope we might get something’. — Brendan Dipple