Heavier rainfall has struck Queensland, Australia, just a few weeks after the devastation caused by Cyclone Alfred. Parts of northern and central Queensland were placed on a severe weather alert for heavy rainfall earlier this week, with six-hourly rainfall totals anticipated to be between 30-60mm and the risk of up to 120mm locally within this time frame.
In the northwest of the state, the rain caused a rapid increase in water levels in the Haughton River, reaching 2.68 meters on Wednesday night, surpassing the major flood level of 2.5 meters.
In a more central location, the heavy showers on Tuesday resulted in the Quilpie Shire, a local government area in Queensland, experiencing its wettest March day in 15 years, with 130mm of rain falling by 9am. This heavy rainfall led to the isolation of several towns, including Eromanga, which is known as the most distant Australian town from the sea.
The Mediterranean also experienced severe storms this week. On Tuesday, hailstorms affected the western Mediterranean, causing the town of Alhaurín el Grande in Spain to be covered in a layer of hail. Similarly, in Fiuminata, Italy, a 20cm layer of hail was deposited during a storm, with tractors required to clear the streets.
On Wednesday, severe storms hit the eastern Mediterranean, with heavy showers affecting the Balkan region. These showers caused severe flooding in Dubrovnik, Croatia, as 82.9mm of rain fell within a 24-hour period. The excessive rainfall triggered landslides and closed roads, turning the sea brown due to the amount of soil and debris being washed away.
In China, following a record-breaking hot spell over the last week, a sharp temperature drop is being experienced as high pressure develops in the northeast of the country and cold air pushes south.
Temperatures in central and eastern parts of China began to rise on March 16, resulting in daytime maximum temperatures reaching the low to mid-30s in some areas over the past week, around 10 to 15 degrees Celsius above the seasonal average. Beijing’s Haidian district recorded a temperature of over 30C last Saturday, the earliest on record for the capital.
However, as colder air moved into northern parts of the country, temperatures plummeted, with Beijing reaching just 12.6C on Thursday, a drop of over 15C in days. As the cold air mass advances, temperatures are expected to decline by another 15-20C further south, accompanied by strong winds and dusty conditions.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/mar/28/weather-tracker-heavy-rain-alerts-in-queensland-as-floods-cut-off-towns
