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The Canberra Times
The Canberra Times
National
Lanie Tindale

More storms expected as Canberrans report damage, cars stranded, flooding

Canberra storms October 22, 2022

Some parts of Canberra became almost indistinguishable from Lake Burley Griffin on Saturday night, as thunderstorms battered the capital.

ACT emergency services said they received 144 callouts in the 24 hours until 11am on Sunday.

Most related to leaking roofs, minor inundation to garages and trees down.

Canberra Airport recorded 31 millimetres of rain in the 24 hours to Sunday 9am.

Rain in Canberra caused flooding. Pictures by Ivorie Struss, Joanne Hagan and Dimitri Psihogios

A video by Ivorie Struss appears to show a car stranded in floodwaters on Belconnen Way near Barry Drive at 7.50pm.

Ms Struss said she was heading towards Belconnen from the city, and had just passed Black Mountain.

"It was so insane," she said.

"We couldn't see it was flooded until we got to it."

A trough that moved through NSW and ACT brought the thunderstorms, Bureau of Meteorologist senior forecaster Christine Johnson said.

"That trough has now moved away to the east," she said.

"But we do have another system that's moving into the west of New South Wales today.

"With this system back over South Australia ... it does have a lot of moisture in it. And we will see that moving over the ACT probably later today."

Canberra weather forecast

  • Monday, October 24: Max 19C, very high chance of showers and chance of severe thunderstorm
  • Tuesday, October 25: Max 21C, high chance of showers
  • Wednesday, October 26: Max 20C, partly cloudy
  • Thursday, October 27: Max 20C, mostly sunny
  • Friday, October 28: Max 17C, partly cloudy
  • Saturday, October 29: Max 16C, partly cloudy
  • Source: Bureau of Meteorology

From Sunday until Tuesday, there is a risk of thunderstorms in the ACT that could lead to flash flooding.

The system could reach Canberra from Sunday late morning, but more likely in late afternoon to evening.

"Otherwise, it's going to be one of those days where the rainfall will be fairly hit and miss in general," Ms Johnson said.

"Some places might not get a huge amount, and then somewhere down the road gets a thunderstorm and gets a whole lot more."

What to do while storm warnings are in place

  • Move indoors, bringing children and pets with you
  • Park your car under secure cover away from trees, powerlines and drains
  • Secure items around the house, yard or balcony which could blow away in strong winds
  • Check to see if neighbours are aware of the warning
  • If flash flooding is likely, move out of low lying homes early
  • Never enter or drive through floodwaters
  • Source: ACT SES

Canberrans have also taken to social media to warn about potholes they said emerged because of the rain.

One person joked he saw "Frodo throw the ring" into a deep pothole on Glenloch Interchange from Belconnen.

In a comment, another person claimed they hit the pothole on Saturday afternoon.

"I was a decent distance behind the car in front of me but because of the rain and the mist from their tyres being splashed back it made it very hard to see the hole and I ran straight over," they said.

Another said she saw five to six drivers on William Hovel Drive changing tyres, "probably from the massive [pothole] there."

A woman warned drivers travelling towards Charnwood on Ginninderra Drive.

"There are two very large potholes that have opened up. One of them takes up quite a good chunk of the right lane," she wrote.

Transport Minister Chris Steel has previously said more rain in the ACT has caused significant damage to the road network, meaning more potholes have formed.

Potholes have impacted roads across the east coast of Australia, with one researcher saying some councils have cancelled works in order to fund road repair.

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