IT WAS still patchy, but more places got more on Tuesday and last night there were reports the rain system that has promised so much for so long was delivering even better widespread steady rain.
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Regional recordings up to yesterday afternoon still showed a marked disparity in rainfalls, but late in the day the forecast tropical system bringing steady rain rather than storms arrived.
Weather experts had predicted it could bring from 20mm to 30mm across a wide area of the North West and the New England overnight yesterday and today.
Meanwhile, earlier rain yesterday saw better falls on the plains than further east – but again it was patchy.
Gowan Brae, near Guyra, topped the area to 9am yesterday with 51mm, followed by Coonabarabran on 43mm, Glen Innes on 30mm, Bellata on 22mm, Tingha on 21mm and Emmaville with 17mm.
Even though Tenterfield recorded 8mm, there were varying reports of between 5mm and 40mm near there. But the rain was very patchy, with one farmer at Carroll telling The Leader he’d recorded 15mm – but another farmer near Lake Keepit recording 80mm.
“He was a bit surprised I didn’t get more excited,” Mark Kesby, of Montrose, Carroll, said.
Bureau of Meteorology Moree officer-in-charge Michael Glasson said most of the rain in NSW on Tuesday had fallen on the plains, particularly in the Central West.
Most falls in our district had been less than 10mm up to 9am yesterday.
Demonstrating the patchy nature of the rain perfectly was the fact that Tamworth recorded 3.4mm up to 9am yesterday, but Goonoo Goonoo got 12mm, Duri 1mm and Glendower Mountain, near Weabonga, a whopping 38mm.
Armidale had 2mm, Inverell 3mm, Boggabri 3mm, Narrabri 0.4mm, Walgett 5mm and Wee Waa 8mm.
It was still fairly light yesterday between 9am-3pm, with Narrabri receiving 8mm, Mungindi 7mm, Moree 5mm, Walgett 3mm, Woolbrook 3mm, Coonabarabran 16mm and Armidale 0.6mm.
The tropical low was expected to set in last night, with solid rain expected all this morning which will ease off later this afternoon.
“There’s a deep trough system over central NSW and western Queensland, so there’s a lot of tropical moisture coming down into north-east NSW,” Mr Glasson said yesterday afternoon.
“It’s pretty patchy at the moment but is expected to be widespread overnight – there could be falls of 50mm.
“It’s not going to be drought-breaking, but it’s definitely a start.”
