Australia, Environment

It’s Raining, It’s Pouring

Forestwood
river flood
Flooded creek near where I used to live. It is normally a tiny stream which often runs dry.

For several years, Australia has languished under extreme drought and water was severely rationed; last year we experienced bushfires on an epic scale that decimated the countryside. A year later, extreme rainfall and flooding on a Noah’s Ark scale!

This is the Australian climate.

Six months of rain fell in just one day and a half. Even by Australian standards, this is severe.

10 million Australians currently under a weather warning as two major systems collide.There have been hundreds of rescues and thousands across the state have faced evacuation orders as huge downfalls have caused rivers to overflow in recent days.The BOM said every mainland state and territory except Western Australia is impacted by the weather event.

https://www.9news.com.au/national/nsw-floods-rescue-operations-mid-north-coast-people-trapped-ses/58e50cdd-27b4-4b9c-9dc5-06568e5217b5

Streets in Brisbane city regularly go under with each and every summer storm, and housing close to riverfronts may be picturesque in the drier times, but remain extremely vulnerable in summer rains and excessive rainfall, such as we are experiencing now.

This is my former local shopping centre car park. Cars floated away with the water.

flooding

In the country, the land is extremely low and flat. The floodplain for a river can be a kilometre or more wide. So there will be problems. Emergency services are busy.

  • Around 15,000 people have been evacuated on the Mid North Coast
  • 3,000 people evacuated in the Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley region
  • Up to 38 regions have been declared natural disaster areas
  • Severe weather warnings issued for southern and western Queensland
  • Heavy rainfall is expected to continue
  • The equivalent of all the water contained in Sydney Harbour is pouring out the country’s rivers each day.

Luckily, we are safe, good rainfall is welcome, for the minute, because all too soon it will be dry again, Very dry.

Further south, particularly in New South Wales, they are in trouble. Big trouble. There are landslips, severed flooding and roads have been cut. Communities have been declared disaster zones and are isolated by floodwater. Farm animals left to fend for themselves as people have no alternative but to leave their homes.

Event the insects are evacuating seeking higher ground.

Another one in 100 year event, is a term I am hearing on an all too regular basis.

Yet another indication of the effects of climate change. Our planet needs help again.

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Published by Forestwood

A philosophic Aussie writes here at StPA, one who will readily admit to loving Scandinavia. I'm interested in global politics and what drives us to be who we are. Scratch the surface and you'll find a practical Environmentalist with an egalitarian bent, trying to unleash a little creativity via the written word. Scandinavian culture, literature and traditions are close to my heart, even though I'm Australian. Travel and courteous discussions greatly broaden the mind, so I travel if I can and am always up for a vigorous, respectful discussion. I'm an avid reader, a writer and I enjoy photography and crafts, particularly traditional art forms. I hope you'll find 'Something to Ponder About,' in my WordPress Community.

90 thoughts on “It’s Raining, It’s Pouring”

    1. That is good to hear. You are near the coast arent’ you? The rainfall here is not as bad as some of the flatter lower lying areas. Or perhaps because we are close to the sea, there is faster runoff?

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  2. You forgot to mention the various Councils who should’ve been lined up and shot for granting areas to suburban developers – areas that were BOUND to flood after heavy rain ..

    Liked by 3 people

  3. What a mess. I’m sorry to read this. It’s been in our national news here as well. Flooding leaves you feeling vulnerable. You just have to watch it happen all around you. Stay safe.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, Ally. Flooding was a consideration I took account of when I chose my new home. There are flood maps based on previous flood levels. Pretty easy to see where it is predicted to happen in future global warming scenarios. Some people don’t have the luxury of choice or are naive in building. But is also extreme weather events like what happened about ten years ago: an ENTIRE town called Grantham, west of here that was swept away in a storm event. That was unprecedented. A reminder to respect natural forces as we are insignificant in comparison.

      Liked by 1 person

  5. I read a very strange book once by Neville Shute called ‘In the Wet’, I think. It’s twenty years or more since I read it so forgive me as I have forgotten the plot. But I’m sure it was about a long Australian drought followed by rain falling heavily?

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      2. The sun was out this morning for the first time in weeks. It was so hot and humid. I may have even got a little burnt doing yoga on the beach this morning…. Perhaps the rain is gone now?

        Liked by 2 people

  7. The world is in a state of chaos it seems, what with flooding, fires, volcanoes, and the rise of far-right governments. One wonders what will come next. I don’t fear for humanity yet, I still have a smidgen of hope but it’s draining away fast.

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    1. Keep the faith Mari and don’t give up on humanity. We are a resilient lot even if we stuff things up badly. The pendulum swings towards far-right governments when people are frightened and unstable. If we can persevere, the pendulum will swing back again and as it does, attitudes and society changes. It may be too late in some respects, but I have to believe it is not too late for us all. We must focus on what we can do. In our small part of the world, in our realms as bloggers to spread awareness and in using our political will to change the Governments that lack foresight.

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    1. Thank you so much for your wishes, Janis. We seem completely fine living where we are and the sun shone this morning for a short while. The wildlife, stretched by last year’s fires and continual habitat loss will enjoy the after-effects of the rain and food for them will be abundant. I try to think about this kind of thing as the alternative is to ponder how worrying these increasingly frequent extreme weather events are and that’s not fun at all. Anxiety is useful only if it motivates us to act.
      The planet will recover but perhaps not in the form we are accustomed to. Humanity has to adapt or wither.

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    1. One never knows what the weather will do, Graham but I suspect New Zealand may cope this weather system next. Auckland has been on water restrictions so they may welcome the rain, as long as it is moderate.

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      3. We’d certainly welcome rain!! But looking at the Met Service long-range forecast, I’m not hopeful. We Aucklanders are becoming used to drought conditions, but it’s scary how much new development is taking place around the region — the future is not looking great.

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      4. Droughts are not fun. Dust in the air, stock and native animals dying, more bushfires! It is awful. I hope you do get some rain from it, Su. Perhaps the system is too far north to affect NZ?

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    1. There are loads of photos and youtube clips about the race of the insects and animals to get away from rising waters. It looks like the insect population is not in any danger of extinction, if the media is anything to go by. Ants always know when there is rain, don’t they. Quite reliable weather forecasters really.

      Liked by 2 people

  11. So sorry this is going on and there are still so many here in the United States that support politicians who refuse to address the problem of climate change. Stay safe.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The folk that refuse to address climate change are some kind of ostriches, aren’t they? LOL. They really are frightened folk that refuse to believe the facts. Thankfully they are in the minority here but sad that they are in a position of influence. I have been reading a book about how to talk to people about climate change that addresses this very topic. It has been insightful.
      Are there many in your circle that are deniers? If so, I wonder how you approach the topic with them. Are they defensive about every aspect of the concept?

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      1. I know very few people who are climate change deniers. But I live in a liberal college town. Most of my friends are very educated and respect science. There are many people in the U.S. that don’t take science seriously. When speaking with them about global warming, the argument I’ve heard most is something like “God would never let that happen.” Sadly, I think there are a fair number who may believe it’s real but are betting it won’t effect them during their lives and they don’t want to give up a scrap of their current conveniences. I wouldn’t want to disparage ostriches by making a comparison. 🙂

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      2. They have faith in God. Good for them. But how long with God take to fix this, if he intervenes, at all? They forget that God is supposed to give man and woman ‘free will.’ That free will is the part that is stuffing things up for their own children and possible grandchildren. Shortsightedness and apathy is a concern. Having empathy for their shortsighted perspective can help them begin to listen to other veiwpoints. But not always….

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      4. I am glad you said that, as I believe it too. It is not productive to argue with folks about issues. They do much better if they can come to their own conclusions and see different perspectives if we remain respectful of opposing views. Sometimes I think frustration comes from thinking folks are deliberating being belligerent, but they truly believe their P.o.V. and we have to give them that until they change their mind, or are triggered to change their mind by their own internal ponderings.

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    1. It is easy to write this one event off as a natural aberration. And yes it is. The trouble is,as you know, Donna, the natural aberrations are becoming more and more frequent. Nature might go wild once in 100 years, but it is man’s actions and consequences of messing with ecosystems and the natural balance that upends everything making these events occur much more rapidly. The world IS heating up. They cannot deny that. It is the cause of that which they are in dispute about. In some ways that is just academic.
      The main focus should be on how to manage that increase in temperature, for all humanity, even if the deniers say it is a natural phenomenon. It IS having effects and in the short term, we have to plan for and adjust to those. There is not much point saying it is a natural phenomenon if the global temperature rises beyond 4 degrees such that food and resources will be hotly contested and life as we know it will become difficult. We need to move and action change now to manage that.

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      2. I will, and hope you also stay safe out there on the roads. Are you headed anywhere over Easter, Miriam? It is notoriously wet over Easter (I only remember one dry year) and yet it is such a popular time to go camping.

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      3. Yes it is a popular time to go camping but no, we won’t be going too far this year. Staying close to home and family. We’ll save the camping for non peak weekends!

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      4. Sounds sensible, Miriam. More enjoyable when it is quieter. I visited Kenilworth one Easter and it was like Queen Street in the Main street. Campers were squeezed in toe to toe in the showgrounds. I doubt anyone got any sleep. Parties in every campsite.

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  16. I feel so sorry for the poor people flooded out. I have been through three floods in South West QLD and one in Hawks Bay NZ. The clean up is shocking and so are the mice plagues , mosquitoes, spiders, sandflies .

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    1. Like you, I have lived through several major floods. 1974 was the very worst. Knee deep mud throughout houses that were covered by water to their rooftops. Mossies yes. I assume the mice plaques were out west?

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      1. Definitely a terrible experience. The mice plagues were at St George, three floods in 22 months. Fortunately my accommodation didn’t get flooded but the township did. 1974 while living in Te Awanga Hawks Bay NZ, three children under 5 ,we were recused at 2am in a rowing boat, knee deep water. No help to fix the rental batch, had to move. I am living near the Boondall Wetlands in Brisbane we always have mosquitoes.

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      2. The experience in Hawkes Bay sounds terrifying.
        I used to live quite near to you so to might recognize the shipping centre in the photo. But moved to the Peninsula recently. We don’t get anywhere near the heavy falls Brisbane gets. Not the mozzies. Even though this is a declared Mosquito area, the councils spray regularly using helicopters over the mangroves. Do they spray Boondall?

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      3. The Hawkes Bay floods were terrifying.
        I live in Taigum, have been here nearly two years. Nice to have sunshine yesterday and again today. They do aerial spraying of the Boondall Wetlands, we do still get mosquitoes but not too worry I just spray myself with repellent 🙂.

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    1. The sheer amount of water is mind boggling. The dams are over 114% capacity and will have to let out excess water into the already flooded river systems. This is when a lot of damage occurs.

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    1. It is not a nice experience for sure to be caught in these floods. Sometimes area that were above the flood line become inundated due to changes in drainage or river courses. But it is a reality when you live on a river flood plain. The whole of inland Australia was once an Inland sea so that it is quite low lying. This leaves it vulnerable to flooding in seasonal heavy rains.

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      2. They are still studying how this happened. Mind you, it was 100 million years ago. It makes us realize how insignifcant we are in regards to time and the universe.

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    1. You are right, Dorothy. Extremes is the correct word to describe what is happening. More and more of them and that is the problem. The planet may survive but will the life on it, all survive? We are safe here. I feel safe. But there are some whose homes are still under water. The sun is out today so that will help begin to dry things out.

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    1. I am a little surprised it made worldwide news. The rain seems to have now passed, at least for the minute. Hoping to get our solar installed on the roof Friday. Crossing fingers!!

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    1. The seven plaques of Egypt, Brian? Nah. Just the Australian climate. It is a challenge to successfully farm here. I would not want to be a farmer, despite some of my husband’s family doing rather well at it. They were lucky though and we won’t mention locusts.
      They are the most likely to appear, perhaps in the form of snakes, mice and other pests though.

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