Storm systems moving across the inland from the west through to the east, bringing extreme gusts, high rainfall, and potentially damaging storms.
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00:00Rain and severe thunderstorms are likely to impact large parts of Western Australia over
00:04the coming days, including the southwest land division and Perth.
00:08Let's take a look at the details now, starting with today's thunderstorm forecast.
00:13The green areas on this map show where thunderstorms are possible.
00:17That includes much of northern and central Western Australia today, but also pushes down
00:21towards the southwest coast and the Perth area.
00:24Through the southwest, storms are possible later this afternoon and evening.
00:29They're unlikely to bring too much rainfall, but may bring some gusty winds at times.
00:34Storms are more likely across inland parts of the state.
00:36In fact, we have severe storms possible in this area across the Pilbara, Gascoigne and
00:40interior.
00:42Storms in these parts may bring locally damaging winds or heavy falls to those inland areas
00:47today.
00:48As we go to tomorrow, though, and look at tomorrow's thunderstorm forecast, we can
00:52see how our storm areas become a lot more widespread, particularly our yellow, severe
00:57thunderstorm areas.
00:58For tomorrow, that covers much of central and southwestern Western Australia.
01:04In these severe storm areas tomorrow, our storms are most likely to bring heavy rainfall.
01:09We could also see some damaging wind gusts and large hail, particularly across inland
01:13areas, but rain is the biggest hazard with any storms tomorrow.
01:18Taking a close-up look at our severe storm area, we can see that it does cover some parts
01:22of the west coast between Kalbarri and Margaret River, then pushes inland to Kalgoorlie.
01:27However, it is worth noting that the coastal fringe is not included in this severe storm
01:32area.
01:33Perth may see non-severe storms through tomorrow afternoon and evening, but it's more the
01:38eastern suburbs which may catch some of those heavy falls that could lead to flash flooding.
01:43Because that is certainly one of the main hazards we're looking at over the next few
01:46days.
01:47Water moving over the roads, interrupting traffic and transport, and potentially cutting
01:51off some access routes across those more inland areas.
01:55The rain may also bring some damage to crops and vegetation across our southern agricultural
01:59areas.
02:00And of course the strong winds with storms may bring down trees or tree limbs, or even
02:04power lines, leading to power outages for some.
02:08So what is driving all of this severe and dangerous weather?
02:11Well we've got a low pressure trough, this blue dashed line here, lying close to the
02:15west coast, but it is connecting with a low pressure system which is sitting just off
02:20the coast there.
02:22Over the next day that is going to generate the unstable conditions across inland parts
02:26of the state, leading to those thunderstorms.
02:29As we go into tomorrow though, this system is going to tap into significant moisture,
02:34drawing it down from the Indian Ocean and directing it across southwestern parts of
02:38Western Australia.
02:39That will feed into any showers and storms that develop, giving them that potential for
02:43heavy falls and flash flooding.
02:47This trough is likely to linger near the coast through Tuesday, but as we go overnight
02:51and into Wednesday we'll start to see it pushing away from the west coast a little more.
02:56That means through the course of Wednesday we'll start to see some clearing conditions
03:00along the west coast, including for the Perth region, but showers, rain and storms are likely
03:05to continue across inland parts of the state.
03:09That's a story that's likely to persist into Thursday as well, as the rain and storm risk
03:13starts moving east.
03:16So exactly how much rainfall are we looking at over the next few days?
03:19Well, starting from tomorrow morning and pushing our way out over the next few days, we can
03:23see that our cumulative rainfall totals are fairly hit and miss.
03:27They're largely determined by where those storms will develop and where the storms will
03:31track.
03:32Many areas may see 30 to 60 mm, but exactly where we'll see those highest falls depends
03:38on those thunderstorms.
03:39Most likely though that will occur across inland areas and is less likely to occur along
03:44the southwest coast.
03:47With severe storms a risk not just today but over the next few days as well, be sure to
03:51stay up to date with the latest forecasts and warnings via the Bureau's website, the
03:55BOM Weather App and via our social media.
03:57Stay safe and we'll catch you next time.