Happy as a pig in mud
Flood watches in place for cyclone
A CYCLONE which could form in the Coral Sea either today or tomorrow is topping up the Far North’s below average rainfall bucket. Weather watchers can expect up to 200mm in southern parts of the region while daily falls of up to 60mm in the city will keep mudlarks like Japanese tourist Kosei Suzuki, on a quad bike at Blazing Saddles, Yorkeys Knob, smiling.
A CYCLONE with a moniker plucked straight out of a Jane Austen-era novel is predicted to bolster flagging rainfall records at the tail end of a fairly sapped wet season.
Cyclone Gretel or Harold, depending on whether a more punctual typhoon claims first naming rights, is expected to develop in the Coral Sea today or tomorrow.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Shane Kennedy said heavy falls would slop the coast from Cape York Peninsula to Mackay with flood watches current over the coming two days.
Cairns weather watchers can expect brolly conditions with 20-60mm rainfall a day and isolated showers exceeding 100mm. The Cassowary Coast should brace for a 200mm daily sluice today and tomorrow. “From Friday, as it moves offshore it will likely take all the weather with it,” Mr Kennedy said.
Rainfall at Cairns Airport had yesterday topped 843.4mm so far this year, compared with 1240mm for the same period last year.
The most finger-wrinkling deluges so far have been 207.6mm on January 29, 72.2mm on January 25, and a terribly inconvenient 68mm bucketing that coincided with the Cowboys and Broncos’ pre-season NRL clash at Barlow Park on February 22.
Mr Kennedy said most of the north tropical coast sat at about two-thirds average rainfall so far for 2020 – although Innisfail was thirsty at less than 50 per cent.
“The next few days should help give you a return to average, but there’s a bit of a way to go,” he said.
FROM FRIDAY, AS IT MOVES OFFSHORE, IT WILL LIKELY TAKE ALL THE WEATHER WITH IT BUREAU OF METEOROLOGY FORECASTER SHANE KENNEDY