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On This Day in 1974 -- Brisbane River Floods
January 27, 2021 at 07:48 PM EST
By WeatherBug's Christopher Smith
On this day in 1974, the Brisbane River flooded, causing much of the Australian city of Brisbane to be inundated with water.
Brisbane sits on Australia’s East Coast in the state of Queensland and had a population of over 900,000 in 1974 when the disastrous flooding occurred. During the Summer of 1973 to 1974, heavy rains continued to pound parts Queensland and nearly every river was flooding by late January 1974.
The troubling signs for the Brisbane floods came as early as January 21, nearly a week before the devastating flooding. A strong monsoonal trough had positioned itself across the coast of southern Queensland, where Brisbane is located. By January 23, Cyclone Wanda had formed and pushed into Queensland by January 25. The combination of a trough and a tropical cyclone helped deliver heavy rainfall across the Brisbane area.
From January 24 to the 29, as much as 20 to 35 inches of rain dumped across Brisbane. By the morning of January 27, major flooding began to occur across the city as the Brisbane River hit the highest level of the century thus far at 4.50 m, besting the 1931 record. The river would continue to rise before hitting a peak of 6.60 early on January 29.
Flooding damaged at least 6,700 homes across the area, with estimates in today’s Australian currency to be a whopping $1.8 billion. In addition, the flooding was responsible for at least 14 deaths.
While Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology made significant achievements in its warning system, including a 21-hour advanced flood warning, there were still weaknesses. The Bureau noted a more sophisticated radar and observation system was needed to observe rainfall rates and predict flooding. Today, Australia possesses a much more sophisticated meteorology system than it did in 1974.
Source: bom.gov.au
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Story Image: Flooding in Brisbane, Australia, in 1974 (Wikimedia Commons).
Brisbane sits on Australia’s East Coast in the state of Queensland and had a population of over 900,000 in 1974 when the disastrous flooding occurred. During the Summer of 1973 to 1974, heavy rains continued to pound parts Queensland and nearly every river was flooding by late January 1974.
The troubling signs for the Brisbane floods came as early as January 21, nearly a week before the devastating flooding. A strong monsoonal trough had positioned itself across the coast of southern Queensland, where Brisbane is located. By January 23, Cyclone Wanda had formed and pushed into Queensland by January 25. The combination of a trough and a tropical cyclone helped deliver heavy rainfall across the Brisbane area.
From January 24 to the 29, as much as 20 to 35 inches of rain dumped across Brisbane. By the morning of January 27, major flooding began to occur across the city as the Brisbane River hit the highest level of the century thus far at 4.50 m, besting the 1931 record. The river would continue to rise before hitting a peak of 6.60 early on January 29.
Flooding damaged at least 6,700 homes across the area, with estimates in today’s Australian currency to be a whopping $1.8 billion. In addition, the flooding was responsible for at least 14 deaths.
While Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology made significant achievements in its warning system, including a 21-hour advanced flood warning, there were still weaknesses. The Bureau noted a more sophisticated radar and observation system was needed to observe rainfall rates and predict flooding. Today, Australia possesses a much more sophisticated meteorology system than it did in 1974.
Source: bom.gov.au
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Story Image: Flooding in Brisbane, Australia, in 1974 (Wikimedia Commons).