Victoria: Rain event - 16th-20th Dec 2011

[Lily]

ILS, anyone else in my area. Is that thunder waaaay off in the distance, or fireworks? It's thunder, right? Pretty consistent too?

[TheFishmanAU]

Looks like it's smashing Daylesford, with Blackwood and Bacchus Marsh about to cop it.

The line looks amazing on radar, the shield is going to have to be super good to deflect this baby.

Looks like a game of British Bulldogs is going to be played between the Storm and it's Shield.

[Jake Smethurst]

Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology
Victoria Regional Office

TOP PRIORITY FOR IMMEDIATE BROADCAST
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING - MELBOURNE AREA
for DAMAGING WIND, FLASH FLOODING and LARGE HAILSTONES
For people in parts of the
Inner,
Northern and
Western Local Warning Areas.

Issued at 9:47 pm Sunday, 18 December 2011.

The Bureau of Meteorology warns that, at 9:45 pm, severe thunderstorms were detected on weather radar near the area north of Bacchus Marsh, the area west of Gisborne and the area east of Daylesford. These thunderstorms are moving towards the east. They are forecast to affect Gisborne, Melton and the area west of Sunbury by 10:15 pm and Footscray, St Albans and Sunbury by 10:45 pm.
Very heavy rainfall and flash flooding are likely, whilst large hail and damaging winds are also possible.

[HarleyB]

Just a quick update here, we currently only sit on 2.8mm, could eke out a little more later on but not very confident. MTD is only 10.6mm. I'll leave it all to you guys down there now, enjoy.

[James]

ILS, anyone else in my area. Is that thunder waaaay off in the distance, or fireworks? It's thunder, right? Pretty consistent too?

cant hear anything at all here

[I_Love_Storms]

ILS, anyone else in my area. Is that thunder waaaay off in the distance, or fireworks? It's thunder, right? Pretty consistent too?

Lily think it's fireworks. IMO too intense and firecracker like to be thunder

[Lily]

Lol, thanks. My husband and I have been sitting here back and forth; fireworks? Nah, thunder? Nah, fireworks?

Can anyone explain for the novices amongst us the significance and cause of the bow?

[Geoff]

ILS, anyone else in my area. Is that thunder waaaay off in the distance, or fireworks? It's thunder, right? Pretty consistent too?

Distant booming heard here too Lily, but sounded like it was S/W of here which doesn't tie in with the radar at all, so could be fireworks. Certainly should be hearing thunder from the W-N/W soon.

[Jake Smethurst]

AWF SEVERE THUNDERSTORM ADVICE
Please use official warnings from the Bureau of Meteorology for professional services.

URGENT: A severe thunderstorm has been identified on weather radar to the west of MACEDON. This thunderstorm is moving east to southeast and is likely to cause damaging winds, particularly straight line damaging winds. Flash flooding is also likely in this thunderstorm with a lesser risk of large hailstones. MACEDON, GISBORNE and SUNBURY, are advised of imminent impact.

[TheFishmanAU]

I can see a distance flash toward the NW of Ivanhoe East/Balwyn North and planes are going around them not the normal route ESE to NW. They are doing the N to SW.

[Dc449]

Fireworks going off somewhere. I think they might be in Mordialloc.

[Jake Smethurst]

Can anyone explain for the novices amongst us the significance and cause of the bow?

A bow is obviously shaped like an archers' bow. They are common when the lower 2-3 km of the atmosphere has strong shear levels, in this case today did, and they are significant because they can cause straight line damaging winds. These often are mistaken for tornado damage, but you will notice any damage in straight lines. Thats the basic summary anyway.

[BigBen]

I feel like a kid on Xmas eve waiying for Santa to come.

[dagget]

This is going to be big, still nothing here nice and calm, with any luck the damaging rain will be to the south but there is a big line of storms.

[Lily]

Thanks Jake Don't go to bed yet HarleyB, looks like there could be a bit more brewing up your way LOL floydlove

[Meso]

So annoying, drove around for 4 hours this afternoon in search of a storm and came up empty handed. Go outside for a smoke just now and could see distant flashes every minute or so. Radar doesn't seem to be picking it up tho, looked like it was NW of here.

[Rhino]

Shouldn't be long now before this band starts crossing the CBD & SE suburbs. Hoping to see a bit of action as I drive the girlfriend back to Cranbourne.

I hope my delaying of the journey pays off haha.

And if your really lucky Floydlove you might get some storm action too!!!

Lots of lightning and booming thunder to my east with that developing line around Castlemaine.

Rhino.

[johnno]

What I wrote this morning....

The system never looked great for South Central Vic and Melbourne it didn't since Tuesday the Northerly was always going to be a factor and the system has generally weakened and slipped more south as it moves across the state.. Great rain for the NW & W but that was always on the cards. The only proper rain we will see out of this system in Melbourne be this evening or later Tonight when the front itself moves through and we get a band of showers or storms coming through but don't expect much Today if your in Melb.

Going exactly to plan!

[nafets]

Thunder and lightning here now....becoming more constant.

[mad*moo73]

@ rhino!