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Thursday's storms becoming severe in eastern Australia

Ben Domensino, Thursday January 16, 2020 - 14:12 AEDT

Severe thunderstorms are developing over parts of eastern Australia this afternoon, with warnings in place for heavy rain, damaging winds and large hail.

A low pressure trough over Australia's eastern inland is triggering showers and thunderstorms in parts of NSW, the ACT and Queensland on Thursday.

Image: Thunderstorms developing near a low pressure trough over eastern Australia on Thursday

At 2pm AEDT, the most intense storms were occurring over the eastern half of NSW, with a severe thunderstorm warning in place along most of the slopes and ranges, including the ACT, and parts of the coast.

Some of the intense thunderstorms produced one-hour rain rates of 53mm at Barrington Tops and 35mm at Blaney around midday. This rain is heavy enough to cause flash flooding, particularly in areas recently affected by bushfires.

Burnt out bushland can exacerbate flash flooding due to increased surface runoff in the absence of thick vegetation. Debris such as ash and branches can also make floodwaters more damaging and lead to blocked drains and waterways.

Thunderstorms were also increasing over parts of Queensland and northeast Victoria on Thursday afternoon, with severe storms possible in both states.

Keep up to date with the latest severe storm warnings in eastern Australia during the rest of Thursday.

- Weatherzone

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