news, latest-news,

Canberra has received its mean rainfall for the month of February in just one day, as parts of the city became flooded with heavy falls. ACT emergency services have received more than 100 calls for help following heavy rain in the capital on the weekend and overnight. The Bureau of Meteorology said 60 millimetres of rain has fallen in Canberra since 9am on Sunday. More than 30 millimetres of that fell in the early hours of Monday morning. The mean rainfall for the month of February in Canberra was 68.4 millimetres, according to the bureau. The ACT State Emergency Service says there has been 111 call-outs as of 6.30am on Monday. An ACT Emergency Services Agency spokeswoman said that number was expected to increase throughout the day as people woke up and assessed the damage from overnight rain. The majority of call-outs have been from Canberra's north, mostly for broken skylights and leaking roofs. The ESA warned Canberrans not park under trees. Several roads have become flooded across Canberra due to the heavy falls. ACT police have warned drivers to avoid State Circle under the Commonwealth Bridge in Yarralumla and Canberra Avenue near Fyshwick. Roads in the Queanbeyan-Palerang Council area have also been closed from flooding. They include River Forest Road, Charleys Forest Road, Jembaicumbene Bridge, Back Creek Bridge, Pigeon Gully Bridge, Northangera Road, Lyons Creek Bridge on Monga Toad and Torpys Lane off Little River Road. Rain is forecast for the rest of the week, with an unwelcome let-up only likely from next weekend. The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast a high probability of rain on Monday "possibly heavy. The chance of a thunderstorm in the afternoon." Forecaster at the bureau Helen Kirkup said heavy falls were still predicted for Monday before easing later in the week. "Wet is the word for Canberra," she said. "It will be wetter on Monday than it was the day before, as the low pressure system comes into the south-east of the country. "We're looking at maybe 30 millimetres on Monday, but we're not expecting much in the way of thunderstorms." The rain over Canberra was hit and miss with suburbs like Watson getting 64 millimetres while Kingston only got 10 millimetres in the same time period. Tuesday is likely to see only 10 millimetres in the capital, before dipping to five millimetres on Wednesday. Showers will continue until in the weekend. An Icon Water spokeswoman said there had been a good amount of rainfall in Canberra's dams. "While it will take some time for the rainfall to become inflows into the dams, we have seen a small increase in storages so far," the spokeswoman said. "We anticipate inflows to storages to continue to improve and consumption to reduce in the short-term. "However, there has not been enough rain to significantly improve our water storage levels." The spokeswoman said sustained rainfall over a longer period of time would be needed to significantly increase dam levels across the ACT. ACT Emergency Services Agency Commissioner Georgeina Whelan was expecting 60 to 90 millimetres of rain in the next three days, with 45 millimetres expected on Monday. "That's enough to dampen the fire ground," she said. As of Monday, Canberra's overall dam levels sit at 44.42 per cent. That amount of rainfall would continue dousing the 85,000-hectare Orroral Valley fire, which has burnt 80 per cent of the Namadgi National Park. That fire is now contained. It continues to burn in patches but within a secure perimeter. Meanwhile, parts of NSW are experiencing severe flooding with communities along the Hawkesbury and Georges rivers ordered to evacuate due to rising floodwaters. More than 150,000 people were without power in Sydney as of Sunday. Ms Kirkup said Canberra's rain would not be as severe as that seen in Sydney or other coastal areas. "The bulk of the rain has been along the coast," she said. The formal "State of Alert" has now been lifted in the ACT. This means that the ESA loses its powers to co-opt other parts of the government for emergency duty and firefighting help from outside the territory. Ms Whelan said the fires in New South Wales to the west, south and east of Canberra were also either being controlled or already under control. Ms Whelan said teams were working to assess the damage to ecological and heritage sites in the Namadgi National Park. Chief Minister Andrew Barr said, "with the State of Alert now lifted, the community can look forward to a greater sense of normality. "We are forming a clearer picture of the impact of this summer of disasters and have already started efforts to support households and businesses to recover. "The impact of extended periods of poor air quality, as well as the travel ban from China, will be felt by many local businesses and organisations for some time." He added, though, that bringing the current fire under control did not mean an end to the bushfire season.

https://nnimgt-a.akamaihd.net/transform/v1/crop/frm/fdcx/doc7970toa84xs7dgof4wv.jpg/r10_435_4245_2828_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg