Historic Rainfall, Flooding Hits Fire-Ravaged Areas Of Australia's East Coast - Reports

Fire-ravaged areas of the Australian state of Queensland have been hit by historic rainfall and flooding after heavy thunderstorms which are predicted to continue throughout the weekend, Australian media reported on Saturday.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th January, 2020) Fire-ravaged areas of the Australian state of Queensland have been hit by historic rainfall and flooding after heavy thunderstorms which are predicted to continue throughout the weekend, Australian media reported on Saturday.

According to the news.com.au portal, 100 millimeters (3.93 inches) of rain fell in many areas of Queensland overnight and into Saturday morning, cutting off road access. The area around Loder Creek, in south-east Queensland, recorded the highest rainfall value as 330 millimeters fell overnight, the portal reported.

Kimba Wong, a forecaster at the Bureau of Meteorology, told the Australian broadcaster ABC that the thunderstorms that triggered the heavy rainfall were a "one-in-100-year event.

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At the same time, many areas of New South Wales and Victoria continue to suffer from some of the most devastating bushfires in Australia's history. Thousands of homes are reportedly still without power, while residents in north-east Victoria were evacuated from their homes once again as fires inched closer to residential buildings.

The bushfires, which have been ravaging across Australia since September 2019 and have recently intensified, have reportedly burned an estimated 15.6 million acres of land, claimed at least 29 lives, destroyed more than 2,000 houses and killed over 1 billion animals. The international community has donated tens of millions of Dollars to aid rescue and fire-extinguishing operations.