From intense rain and floods to heatwaves and drought, Australians across the country faced weather extremes as politicians headed into their first full week of campaigning.
Queensland cities and towns were still dealing with the effects of flooding on Monday, including extensive stock losses and widespread damage, after a year’s worth of rain fell in a matter of days.
The north Queensland city of Townsville would “almost certainly” surpass its annual rainfall record this week, just three months into 2025, according to the Bureau of Meteorology’s senior meteorologist Jonathan How.
Rainfall totals at Townsville airport were sitting at 2.35 metres for the year so far, he said, just 50mm shy of the city’s wettest year on record, when 2.4 metres was recorded over a period of 12 months in 2000.
The Queensland outback town of Winton, Australia’s dinosaur capital, had recorded 510mm so far in 2025, compared to an average of 387.8mm, one of many inland places already exceeding their average annual rainfall.
Further rain was expected for western and southern Queensland on Tuesday and Wednesday, as the low pressure system due to ex-Tropical Cyclone Diane (now sitting over Western Australia and the Northern Territory) moved east, How said.
That could bring isolated totals of up to 50mm, including to places already experiencing flooding, he said, potentially prolonging or causing renewed rises.
Inland flood waters were expected to take weeks, or even months, to move downstream into South Australia, towards Kati Thanda/Lake Eyre.
Surf Life Saving NSW warned hazardous surf conditions would probably continue off the coast of New South Wales this week, with hundreds of beaches likely to close as a low pressure system continued to bring large waves and swells for coastal areas.
Steve Pearce, the organisation’s chief executive, said it had already been a trying month for volunteers and lifeguards, and urged people to check BeachSafe before visiting the coast.
“It’s really important to remember as well that hazardous surf doesn’t just impact rockfishers, swimmers and boaters, it can be dangerous for sightseeing as well, especially in exposed locations and rock platforms.”
Meanwhile in Perth, residents were contending with extreme and protracted heat, including a run of six days in a row above 35C, which equalled the all-time March record for the metropolitan area, How said. “The last time we saw six days in a row in March above 35 degrees was back in 1985.”
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In Adelaide, the city was experiencing its driest December to March period since 1963-64, and the driest on record for Adelaide airport.
Throughout 2025, the city had only recorded a total of 14mm of rain, an amount that was well below the average of 64mm. Unfortunately, there was “nothing substantial or useful” in terms of rainfall expected for Adelaide in the next 10 days, How said.
With reservoirs currently sitting at 38%, Adelaide’s desalination plant continued to operate at full pelt – producing the equivalent of its usual monthly output in two days – to top up the city’s water supply.
Dr Lynette Bettio, a senior climatologist at the BoM, said March had been wetter than average for Queensland and northern NSW, in part due to ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, noting that the highest accumulated rainfall for the year was 1.6 metres at Cardwell Range, in Queensland, up to 26 March.
However the rain had not improved storage levels in the Murray-Darling Basin – sitting at 20% lower than the same time last year – and dry conditions persisted for southern agricultural regions, particularly in South Australia and western Victoria.
Australia also banked its warmest March day on record, reaching an average of 38.7C on 1 March, according to the bureau’s most recent climate update.
Australia’s land surface has warmed by 1.5C since 1910, according to the bureau, and the climate crisis has increased the frequency and severity of extreme weather events.
