‘Unusual' thunderstorm hits Perth's south, tearing off roofs, flooding homes

The Department of Fire and Emergency Services is attending dozens of call outs for storm damage in Perth's southern suburbs after a severe thunderstorm hit Rockingham.

The storm as it approached the Rockingham shore on Sunday morning.

Winds of 130 kilometres an hour were recorded on Garden Island off the coast around 10:30am on Sunday before the storm hit the mainland.

The roof was torn off a fish and chips store on the Rockingham foreshore letting in heavy rainfall which caused the restaurant's fryers to overflow.

Four fire crews raced to make it safe with the oil creating a significant fire risk.

Damaging winds brought down trees in Rockingham, Waikiki and Mardella.

Hail and torrential rainfall created localised flooding on some streets and in some homes.

Read the story by James Carmody in The Age - “‘Unusual' thunderstorm hits Perth's south, tearing off roofs, flooding homes.”

‘Blast furnace': Warning over heat risk as Victoria braces for extreme fire danger

Victorians should cancel outdoor activities during extreme heat on Saturday, authorities say, as emergency services roster on more paramedics for what is expected to be the hottest day in two years.

Acting Premier James Merlino, Emergency Management Victoria
 commissioner Craig Lapsley and Ambulance Victoria commander
 Paul Holman provide an update on the heat and fire risk. 

The advice comes as authorities are also bracing for an extreme fire risk, with strong northerly winds set to whip the state as temperatures climb to near-record levels.

Read the Melbourne Age story by Amber Schultz and Benjamin Priess - “‘Blast furnace': Warning over heat risk as Victoria braces for extreme fire danger.”

South Asia floods: Appeals for help as monsoon rains cause havoc in India, Nepal, Bangladesh

There is an urgent need for rescue and relief services on the Indian subcontinent as severe monsoon flooding spreads across India, Nepal and Bangladesh, leaving more than 1,200 people dead since the rains started.

Oxfam says two-thirds of Bangladesh is under water.

Oxfam said its Bangladesh staff reported two-thirds of the country was under water and in some areas the flooding was the worst since 1988, creating an urgent demand for humanitarian supplies.

Wide scale flooding in an arc stretching across the Himalayan foothills caused landslides and washed away tens of thousands of homes and vast swathes of farmland.

The UN said about 40 million had been affected.

Read the ABC News story - “South Asia floods: Appeals for help as monsoon rains cause havoc in India, Nepal, Bangladesh".

Coastal councils are already adapting to rising seas

Sarah Boulter writes about
protecting our coasts.

The wild storms that lashed eastern Australia earlier this year damaged property and eroded beaches, causing millions of dollars' worth of damage. As sea levels rise, the impact of storms will threaten more and more homes, businesses and services along the coastline.

CSIRO projections suggest that seas may rise by as much 82cm by the end of the century. When added to high tides, and with the influence of winds and associated storms, this can mean inundation by waters as high as a couple of metres.

As a community, we have to start deciding what must be protected, and how and when; where we will let nature take its course; how and if we need to modify the way we live and work near the coast; and so on. Many of these decisions fall largely to local governments.

Read the piece on The Conversation by a Research Fellow from the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility at Griffith University, Sarah Boulter - “Coastal councils are already adapting to rising seas – we’ve built a website to help.”

Cuts will hamper community groups in their helping role

Community groups will play a lead role when extreme weather events resulting from climate change unfold to trouble societies.

However, today’s Melbourne Age reports that the community sector in Victoria will not be equipped to handle natural disasters and emergencies, leaving vulnerable people at risk if disaster strikes.

The story: “Community sector struggles to cope after state and federal funding cuts” tells readers, “It is estimated that in the event of an emergency, about half of all community sector organisations would be out of operation for a week if they sustained serious damage – and many might never provide services again, according to a recent Victorian Council of Social Services report.”