Perth shivers with more rain on the way for Friday
Date: February 9 2017
David Allan-Petale
The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting hot sunny weather for Thursday... next week.
Right now though Perth is enduring a wet and miserable Thursday with up to 25mm of rain forecast and cold temperatures driven by gusty winds.
The weather is so bad that the Perth International Arts Festival has been forced to cancel its 'Festival Eve' event at Chevron Festival Gardens near the CBD.
That could be a good move though - Perth is on track to record its coldest February day on record, with temperatures only predicted to reach 20 degrees on Thursday, 1.8 degrees below the current record.
And it's not just the city copping an unseasonal soaking.
Record rains are falling in the Pilbara, the Mid West is getting a soaking and down south there's been heavy rainfall too.
Karratha has copped a downpour of 210 millimetres in the 24 hours to Thursday morning, making it its wettest February day on record.
Rainfall chart for week ending 9th Feb. Heaviest fall 245mm Kalumburu. #Karratha 233mm. https://t.co/foG0b3t5k5 pic.twitter.com/ZaNkMnYxOG
— BOM WA (@BOM_WA) February 9, 2017Bureau of Meteorology spokesman Neil Bennett said the deluge was the second wettest day on record in Karratha, second only to when the town was bucketed with 212.4 millimetres of rain on January 10, 2006.
He said a tropical low off the coast was causing the wild weather, which was also impacting Perth.
"The reason we're getting the rain now is because of the tropical low interacting with another weather system."
Looking ahead, Friday is set to be another wet and windy day, with up to 40mm forecast to fall in Perth.
Perth 7-day forecast
Friday - 15, 27, rain
Saturday - 19, 28, possible shower
Sunday - 19,30, shower or two, possible thunderstorm
Monday - 20, 31, possible storm
Tuesday - 20, 28, possible shower
Wednesday - 18, 30, partly cloudy
Thursday - 17, 30, sunny