The birds are shellshocked but we are fine.

Well it’s been a hairy night, but we have not sustained any damage. The wind is still howling through the tree tops and we are still getting a few heavy showers passing across. We have been outside tidying up, well Peter mostly.

Clean up Pete with is big muscles and fancy see through poncho.

 The radio this morning said that 203,000 homes in Queensland are without power and some of them will have to wait for some time to be reconnected. Telstra also has had major problems up north and the 000 numbers are not working, there are no phones, no internet connections etc in much of the northern areas of the state. So quite a few people are without outside communications.

 

  

Debri on the driveway. It doesn't look too bad in this picture.

 

Parts of Bundaberg, Brisbane, Maryborough and Gympie are underwater or going under. In fact all the towns from Cairns down have been affected in some way. Here on the Gold Coast, the rivers are up and areas of the hinterland have had up to 400 mls of rain in the last 24 to 36 hours. That is around 12 to 16 inches of rain. That’s a lot of water and it all has to go somewhere.

  

Debri under the trees by the carport.

 As for us we have got off surprisingly lightly. A large amount of small twigs and bark has been peeled off the gum trees and is now adorning the lawns and driveway. A few smaller branches have come off and one is reclining at the bottom of the pool. The pool is surprisingly clean, often the wind will deposit all sorts of leaves and stuff there.

The poor birds are sitting the trees looking very sad for themselves, very bedraggled and the tamer ones we feed daily are sitting there demanding some breakfast.

The television has just said that some windows have been broken by waves in a restaurant in Burleigh. It must be pretty wild down by the beach.

We're in for a rough night.

For a change the radio and television are not running their programs. Everything is live coverage of the weather, with constant updates and weather warnings.

 Poncho Pete sorting out the pool. It is nearly overflowing so will release a little bit of the water.

Here on the Gold Coast, where our house sit is, we are just seeing the beginnings of what they tell us will be a fairly nasty 24 hours. The wind around the city and around the coast is bad, people hardly able to stand up in it, especially around the high rise buildings, the hotels etc which sets up a funnel for the wind to whip through.

The little fountain pool is overflowing.

This house is on the western sheltered side of a highish hill, and the weather is coming from the east, from the ocean, so we are more sheltered than some of the areas. That is good, but the tall gum trees up the back of the block are certainly moving around a lot. They are forecasting winds of around 100 km an hour, with some gusts more than that.

 

The trees up the back.

 

The ground is absolutely sodden. Peter and I have been outside making sure everything is ship shape for overnight. We keep some beach balls on the pool, they are supposed to keep the ducks away, although no-one told the ducks, they still visit sometimes. I threw them over the fence ready to collect and put in the shed and lol…the wind took them down the driveway onto the grass, so I had to retrieve them from the soggy grass.



Pool balls having a rest in the shed till the rain is over.

 I think the ground here is basically rock, there is top soil on top, but really the majority is solid rock so I don’t have any worries about the ground slipping. Anyway this area has been through other bad weather like this and been fine. The only thing that I will keep an eye on is the tall gum trees up the back. If one of them comes down, it could get the house, but I don’t think there will be any problems.

They are forecasting between 100 and 200 mils of rainfall over the next 24 to 36 hours. That is 4 to 8 inches. We have had 60 mils in the last couple of hours, and around 6 inches so far, maybe more.

Fortunately there are no thunder storm associated with this weather. That would make it really bad, although there are hundreds of people without power now all along the coast.

The home owners have got a handy little rain gauge on the end of the clothes line. For the past couple of months it has been dying of thirst, now it is saving 60 mls every couple of hours.

 The poor bedraggled birds are looking a bit sad, sheltering where they can. The tame ones are coming to the back door ordering their dinner, haha, and sucker Peter is handing out some bread for them.


My blue coat. This is my faithful blue coat I take to China for the cold. It has saved me from minus 7 afternoons in Suzhou, snow in Tiananmen Square, and freezing cold winds all over China. Today for the first time I have used it in Queensland, we never need anything warm here, but I have found out it is not waterproof. Windproof yes, but it lets through copious amounts of rain.....lol...

Off to make a coffee and watch the news again.