Storm Season 08/09: Storm 10, A Commentary

Finally a storm that has had a brilliant build up! This year from October has been a year of powerful storms that won’t be forgotten in a long time, but where has the build up been? The answer was provided yesterday as the hot and humid weather gave Brisbane City the site of some truly magnificent clouds. The sky was blue with amazing white updrafts, which as they drew closer and larger became grey and darkening more with each minute. Being on holidays in the city I viewed these clouds and even got some photos of them on sunset from my hotel window. Then I spent 15 minutes in a hallway with no windows, and when we left the hotel for a night stroll and dinner the storm was there in its dark, thundery beauty.

The sky was illuminated by the lights from buildings and streets in the city, with the light being reflected from the underbelly of the clouds, reminiscent of photos I’ve seen of Hong Kong where the lights are reflected off the pollution.
We went to dinner and were seated outside at the restaurant. The wind died down and bit and as we discussed the menu the odd infrequent droplet would fall on one of us. The waiter came to take our orders and along with the food we requested to be moved to a sheltered table. We were moved and then it began.

Only a minute after we shifted table an almighty gust of wind threw leaves from trees and into the restaurant and the rain began. It came fairly quickly after the wind and the waiters rushed to accommodate the rest of the outdoor diners. Some lights in the parklands went out for a short while but then came back on mid storm, while the restaurant lights and city lights stayed on so a blackout evidently did not occur.
The meals were served and everyone had a great time dining while the storm raged on.

It is because of this I could not perform an overly detailed account of the storm, but it did remain raining for some time, finally stopping some 90 minutes later at which point we left the restaurant, though the lightning hung around longer than that.

Because I was in town and not at home, the final statistics are a little different, but nonetheless, time for the final statistics:

Final Statistics:
Wind: yes
Rain: yes
Lightning: yes
Hail: no
Blackout: no
Structural damage: no
Human damage: no

Deck: flooded
Northern alfresco: dry
Southern alfresco: wet
Inside the restaurant: dry

Total score:
Although I was out and couldn’t do my usual observations, the storms don’t wait for me and this one was certainly great whether out or trainspotting. (That last sentence doesn’t seem to make sense so if you don’t understand it then ignore it.) The build up was exactly like the one I’ve been describing all season, and it is about time we got one. I’m extremely happy about this storm, certainly didn’t have everything and wasn’t the heart-racing thrill a minute downpour of some other storms, but then it didn’t kill anyone either (as far as the news suggests). More storms like this would be nice, bring them on!

Brisbane storm 29th December 2008:
Total Score: 8/10

If you’re a BoM forecaster then please give a detailed explanation of how this storm varies from others in this season, otherwise general comments and opinionative contributions are appreciated as always.