Three supercell storms, similar to those witnessed by New South Wales on Thursday, have ripped through Queensland, leaving tens of thousands of homes damaged and without power.
The storms rolled across the state’s south-east on Friday, plunging cities into complete darkness, with winds in excess of 90 km/h and over 200,000 lightning strikes with 46,000 hitting the ground.
Over 46,000 homes were left without power, a roof had lifted off a home and trains were delayed for more than an hour, the Courier Mail reports.
The Redland City, Gold Coast, Scenic Rim and Somerset regions were the worst to be hit.
The devastation comes even after the Bureau of Meteorology cancelled a severe thunderstorm warning for the region.
The supercell storm ripped through southeast Queensland on Friday with over 200,000 lightning strikes with 46,000 hitting the ground
The storm emitted winds in excess of 90 km/h, bringing down a market festival in Surfers Paradise (pictured)
The storm plunged southeast Queensland into darkness as it rolled across the skies
Fallen trees were seen blocking off streets, and power lines were pulled down.
Commuter chaos ensued after power outages cut train services while people travelling by bus to and from the Brisbane CBD were delayed for over 90 minutes as the South Brisbane station went dark.
In Surfers Paradise, gale force winds completely destroyed a market stalls, the marquees seen lifting up into the air and slamming back down to the ground.
Shocked locals ran for cover as debris soured above their heads.
As of 9pm, over 43,000 homes and businesses remained without power.
Energex had since stated that crews will be working tirelessly through the night but power won’t be back on for everyone until Saturday at the earliest.
Energex had since stated that crews will be working tirelessly through the night but power won’t be back on for everyone until Saturday at the earliest
The devastation comes even after the Bureau of Meteorology cancelled a severe thunderstorm warning for the region
The devastation comes even after the Bureau of Meteorology cancelled a severe thunderstorm warning for the region
Scenic Rim mayor Greg Christensen said the storm was ‘ferocious’ with winds unlike he’s ever seen.
He said around eight homes have had their roofs ripped off in Kalbar, liking the damage to the hailstorm they experienced in October that like this one, has impacted Kalbar the most.
On the Gold Coast, more than 150 people called State Emergency Service crews for help.
Brisbane could see severe storms on Saturday, but the Bureau of Meteorology cautioned the system’s exact track was still ‘a bit hard to pin down’.
As Queensland begin their clean up, Sydney is still mopping up after the catastrophic hailstorm that pounded them on Thursday.
The repair bill for damage caused by a ‘catastrophic’ hailstorm that struck Sydney and other parts of NSW is expected to exceed $125 million.
More than 25,000 people have lodged claims so far, the Insurance Council of Australia said on Friday, with three quarters relating to motor vehicle damage.
Many homes and businesses suffered damage to roofs, awnings and solar panels while overflowing gutters caused interior damage to some properties, the council said after declaring the storm a ‘catastrophe’.
It expects the number of claims to rise sharply over the coming days.
As Queensland begin their clean up, Sydney is still mopping up after the catastrophic hailstorm that pounded them on Thursday
The repair bill for damage caused by a ‘catastrophic’ hailstorm that struck Sydney and other parts of NSW is expected to exceed $125 million
More than 25,000 people have lodged claims so far, the Insurance Council of Australia said on Friday, with three quarters relating to motor vehicle damage
Hailstones the size of tennis balls were photographed by Sydney-siders as they took in the damage the short storm caused
Windshields were smashed, roofs damaged and both cars and homes impacted by flash flooding
Tennis ball-sized hailstones smashed into homes and cars in Sydney’s west around 5pm on Thursday, while golf ball-sized stones battered the city’s inner suburbs less than an hour later.
Windshields were smashed, roofs damaged and both cars and homes impacted by flash flooding.
NSW SES received calls to about 1800 jobs throughout the night with more than 500 volunteers responding.
‘We’ve had lots of jobs so far where the house is uninhabitable with several rooms and ceilings collapsing,’ spokesman Christopher Mawn told reporters on Friday.
Many homes and businesses suffered damage to roofs, awnings and solar panels while overflowing gutters caused interior damage to some properties, the council said after declaring the storm a ‘catastrophe’
NSW SES received calls to about 1800 jobs throughout the night with more than 500 volunteers responding
‘We were just recovering from a previous storm cell as well, so we had outstanding jobs from there. It’s been a busy few weeks for SES.’
The Bureau of Meteorology called it the ‘worst hailstorm in 20 years.’ Hailstones with a diameter of five to eight centimetres fell in Berowra, Casula and Liverpool.
‘While hail of this size is uncommon, we do see a lot of storms over the summer due to higher daytime temperatures,’ bureau forecaster Craig Ryan told AAP.
Mr Ryan said the wild weather would clear over the coming days.
Endeavour Energy on Friday afternoon said thousands of homes were still without power.
The number of claims reported by Sydney-siders are expected to rise sharply in the coming days