General News
16 March, 2024
Hot and wet summer
IT has been a wet and hot summer for the region, with 1.5m of rain falling in Mareeba over the three months and more than 1.7m inundating Atherton.
Most of the rain recorded was in December, with Mareeba receiving 881mm and Atherton 877mm, but January also delivered, with 397mm for Mareeba and 577mm for Atherton.
February was a little less wet, with 290mm falling in Atherton and 267mm in Mareeba.
The hottest day of summer was on 1 December, when 37.9 degrees Celsius was recorded at Mareeba Airport, with Atherton and Walkamin a touch cooler at 35.6 C on the same day.
The hottest day ever recorded for Mareeba was 38.9 C on Christmas Day in 2019.
The Bureau of Meteorology's long-range forecast is indicating warmer days and nights this autumn, with most of Australia having at least an 80% chance of above average temperatures.
The bureau says summer has been wetter than usual for many areas, with rainfall tracking around 14% above average for Australia overall.
This would be Australia's third-highest summer rainfall total on record during an El Niño, behind 2009-10 and 1994-95.
