Western Australia, Victoria hit by wild storms as Perth Airport power outage means flights canceled

Wild weather plunges airport into darkness, rips roofs off houses and drags trees onto train tracks after storms lashed WA and Victoria

  • Wild weather wreaked havoc in Victoria with around 200 calls for SES help
  • About 35,000 people in Perth were left without power after massive outage
  • Peth Airport was also plunged into darkness with numerous flights cancelled
  • Airport confirmed it affected terminal lights, info boards, check-in and flights 

Australia has been lashed by wild weather with 130km/h winds ripping roofs off houses and triggering commuter chaos as trees were ripped down onto the tracks.

Western Australia and Victoria received the worst of the weather with Perth Airport plunged into darkness on Tuesday night after suffering a power outage, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded and forced to use their phone lights to navigate out of the terminal.   

At one point there were some 35,000 people without power in Western Australia but that number dropped to around 10,000 on Wednesday morning after technicians worked through the night to fix downed power lines. 

In WA, destructive winds wreaked havoc with tress knocked down and fences blown over. At one point there were some 35,000 people without power in WA but that number is understood to have dropped to around 10,000

Perth Airport was plunged into darkness (pictured) on Tuesday with dozens of international and domestic flights cancelled and people left stranded in darkness. Power to the airport was eventually restored shortly after midnight

Perth Airport was plunged into darkness (pictured) on Tuesday with dozens of international and domestic flights cancelled and people left stranded in darkness. Power to the airport was eventually restored shortly after midnight

Destructive winds wreaked havoc with tress knocked down and fences blown over.

Emergency crews across the state responded to more than 300 call-outs on Tuesday as several homes in Port Kendi and Joondalup suffered extensive damage.

In Victoria overnight,  there were around 200 calls for help across the state with SES crews working non-stop. 

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said the worst of the Victorian weather system was now over. 

However, another weather system will kick in on Wednesday night, starting in the west of Victoria before sweeping towards the east.

Western Australia is also looking at another dangerous system, expected to pick up around 11am on Wednesday (local time) and last for about three hours. 

The wild weather meant another chaotic day for Aussie travellers as Perth Airport was forced to cancel dozens of international and domestic flights over the power outage. 

Electricity to the airport was eventually restored shortly after midnight. 

In Victoria overnight there were around 200 calls for help across the state with SES crews working non stop

In Victoria overnight there were around 200 calls for help across the state with SES crews working non stop

The outage impacted lighting in the terminal and left baggage carousels unable to operate with frustrated passengers left literally in the dark. 

Flight information boards were blank and dozens of flights grounded on the tarmac, delayed or cancelled. 

Footage posted online shows the terminal plunged into darkness with arriving passengers relying on phone lights to track their luggage being manually brought into the terminal due to the bag carousels not working. 

‘Sitting in the dark cold boarding gate at Perth Airport while starving. An international airport without sufficient back up power,’ one woman tweeted.

Emergency crews across the state responded to more than 300 call-outs on Tuesday as several homes in Port Kendi and in Joondalup north of Perth suffered extensive damage

Emergency crews across the state responded to more than 300 call-outs on Tuesday as several homes in Port Kendi and in Joondalup north of Perth suffered extensive damage

Other photos show the arrival and departure flight board blank with no information available.

‘Massive crowd in airport. Departure gate closed and no communication. Been here for three hours,’ one traveler told Daily Mail Australia.

A concerned relative tweeted: ‘My 80 year old mother is on QF943 from Brisbane. It’s in the air but no idea if it can land.’

Sydney is also predicted to be slammed with wet weather across the next four days. 

The state is likely to experience significant rainfall and damaging winds in the coming days, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

BOM’s head of long-range forecasting Dr Andrew Watkins said above average rainfall is expected across most of the country in the next three months. 

‘With wet soils, high rivers and full dams, and the outlook for above average rainfall, elevated flood risk remains for eastern Australia’, he said.

Weather forecast 

Sydney:

Wednesday: Min 10C, Max 23C. Winds 20 to 30 km/h in the morning.

Thursday: Min 16C, Max 22C. Winds 25 to 40 km/h in the afternoon and evening. Possible rainfall 2 to 4 mm.

Friday: Min 15C, Max 22C. Winds 15 to 25 km/h in the morning.

Saturday: Min 10C, Max 20C. Winds 15 to 20 km/h during the day.

Brisbane:

Wednesday: Min 12C, Max 23C. Mostly sunny

Thursday: Min 12C, Max 24C. Winds 15 to 25 km/h during the day

Friday: Min 14C, Max 27C. The chance of morning fog

Saturday: Min 15C, Max 23C. Medium chance of showers 0 to 5 mm of rain.

Adelaide:

Wednesday: Min 10C, Max 19C. Winds 35 to 50 km/h. Possible showers 0 to 2 mm of rain. 

Thursday: Min 10C, Max 17C. Winds 35 to 50 km/h. Showers 4 to 8 mm of rain. 

Friday: Min 9C, Max 14C. Winds 25 to 45 km/h. Showers 6 to 15 mm of rain. 

Saturday:  Min 8C, Max 13C. Winds 25 to 35 km/h. Showers 2 to 6 mm of rain.

Canberra:

Wednesday: Min 2C, Max 18C. Winds 25 to 35 km/h. Chance of a thunderstorm 4 to 10 mm or rain.

Thursday: Min 10C, Max 17C. Winds 25 to 40 km/h. Chance of a thunderstorm 50 to 70 mm of rain. 

Friday: Min 6C, Max 16C. Winds 20 to 30 km/h. Showers 2 to 5 mm of rain. 

Saturday:  Min 3C, Max 13C. Winds 15 to 20 km/h. Shower or two 0 to 1 mm of rain.

Melbourne:

Wednesday: Min 11C, Max 19C. Winds 35 to 55 km/h. Chance of a thunderstorm 3 to 6 mm of rain. 

Thursday: Min 12C, Max 19C. Winds 15 to 25 km/h. Showers most likely in the morning and afternoon 0 to 2 mm of rain. 

Friday: Min 10C, Max 17C. Winds 25 to 35 km/h. High chance of showers 1 to 4 mm of rain. 

Saturday:  Min 8, Max 15C. Wind 15 to 25 km/h. High chance of showers 2 to 5mm of rain.

Perth:

Wednesday: Min 10C, Max 17C. Winds 35 to 65 km/h. Chance of thunderstorms 15 to 20 mm of rain. 

Thursday: Min 10C, Max 17C. Winds 25 to 50 km/h. Showers 3 to 6 mm of rain.

Friday: Min 7C, Max 17C. Light winds. slight chance of showers 0 – 0.4 mm of rain. 

Saturday: Min 8C, Max 18C. Winds 15 to 20 km/h. Showers 1 to 4 mm of rain.

Hobart:

Wednesday: Min 7C, Max 16C. Winds 15 to 35 km/h. Possible showers 0 to 1 mm of rain. 

Thursday: Min 8C, Max 16C. Winds 15 to 40 km/h. Shower or two 0 to 2 mm of rain.

Friday: Min 7C, Max 15C. Winds 15 to 20 km/h. Showers 1 to 4 mm of rain.

Saturday: Min 7C, Max 12C. Winds 15 to 20 km/h. Showers 2 to 8 mm of rain.

Darwin: 

Wednesday: Min 20C, Max 31C. Winds 15 to 25 km/h. Chane of morning fog. 

Thursday: Min 21C, Max 31C. Winds 15 to 20 km/h. Partly cloudy.

Friday: Min 21C, Max 31C. Winds 15 to 20 km/h. Mostly sunny. 

Saturday: Min 21C, Max 32C. Winds 15 to 25 km/h. Sunny.

Source: Bureau of Meteorology 

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