In case you missed it, summer’s over. After a long, sweaty season, Daylight Savings is coming to an end, and winter has come knocking – making its presence very much known today (Friday, April 5) with what has been labelled a black nor’easter. In case you were wondering, it has nothing to do with Easter – instead, it’s a weather front characterised by dark clouds, and a whole lot of rain. In fact, according to the Bureau of Meteorology, Sydney could expect to see a whole month’s worth of rain in one day today – umbrellas at the ready.
After a relatively dry summer – with the muggiest day on record occurring on January 11, and the hottest start to March in over a century – the rain is starting to set in. Today, the BOM is predicting that Sydney will see between 120-200mm of rainfall. Considering the average monthly rainfall in the Harbour City in April is around 140mm, that’s real wet.
The black nor’easter weather system swept through Queensland earlier this week, and is set to reach its peak in Sydney today – with the rainfall starting to ease off by tomorrow (Saturday, April 6).
As of 9am today, ten schools across the state were closed due to heavy rainfall, and Sydney’s Domestic Airport is experiencing delays.
Forecasters have warned that the severe rainfall could cause some of Sydney’s rivers to burst their banks, and Narrabeen Lagoon has been manually opened to act as an overflow spillway for Sydney’s Northern Beaches.
According to the BOM, the black nor’easter will also bring with it winds of up to 65km/h and large and powerful surf, making coastal activities extremely hazardous.
The wild weather conditions are set to last into Saturday afternoon, so plan your weekend activities accordingly.
And, most importantly, don't drive through flood waters!
You can keep an eye on the forecast over here.
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