Australia Weather News

Heavy showers and thunderstorm activity have continued to hit parts of North Queensland as the Bureau of Meteorology monitors a tropical low off the coast.

Senior meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said some parts of the flood-stricken north tropical coast received up to 100 millimetres of rain overnight.

"Obviously this is a part of the state which has seen a lot of rain over the past few weeks," she said.

"It's been a wet night and that's thanks to a south-easterly surge pushing up the coast.

"We have seen up to 129mm since 9am yesterday morning at Deeragun and 97mm at Cardwell Gap.

"We are going to see that chance of some more moderate falls continuing about the north tropical coast for the rest of the day."

The BOM has issued a hazardous surf warning for the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and K'gari.

"The most notable thing about the weather for the south-east today is that conditions could be quite dangerous, with some large waves and dangerous swells," Ms Bradbury said.

"In the north the rainfall and the ongoing flooding are the main watch points, but it's certainly a bit of a different story from what we were looking at a couple of weeks ago."

Cyclone watch continues

The BOM is closely monitoring a weak tropical low in the Coral Sea.

"It's still several days before we could see any potential tropical development in the Coral Sea," senior forecaster Angus Hines said.

The longer-range forecast shows signs of potential development hundreds of kilometres from the country from about Tuesday next week.

"There's a chance that we could see that development move closer to Queensland, potentially bringing some severe weather and rainfall, perhaps in the second half of next week, but at the moment that's just an outside chance," Mr Hines said.

"Once we eventually start seeing it on the satellite imagery we can get a much more confident idea of where it's going to move in, which places it might impact, if any at all.

"So at the moment it's a watch this space, but definitely one to be aware of."

Flood warnings remain

Mr Hines said temperatures were expected to return to normal after blistering heat in some areas.

"The only exception being the very far north-west — Mount Isa, Cloncurry, Julia Creek, which is running a little bit warm at the moment," he said.

"Temperatures are three or four degrees warmer than usual up in that part of the state."

Mr Hines said rivers in the Townsville, Bowen and Cairns areas had steadily dropped, but there was a major flood warning in place for the Lower Flinders River and a moderate warning for the Connors-Isaac and Thomson rivers.

"With the overall drier pattern for Wednesday and the days ahead, we're expecting to continue to see those river levels gradually easing and a few of those flood peaks working their way downstream out towards the ocean," he said.

The state's heaviest rainfall was recorded at Hawkins Creek, near Ingham, where 107mm fell yesterday.

It takes the station's monthly total to date up to 1,679mm, which is more than three times the median February total of 485mm.

Falls of more than 295mm were recorded in the first three days of February alone.

Paluma Ivy Cottage, south of Townsville, recorded the most rainfall in the state for the month so far with 2,667mm.

On February 2 and 3, 721mm and 745mm fell on February 2 and 3, which is five times the median monthly total of 514mm.