Queensland, New South Wales hit by storm

How’s the weather at your place? Share your photos on social media using #weekendweather and we’ll add it to our gallery.

Emergency services received more than 1000 calls for help on Saturday as wind and rain pummelled NSW, dimming Sydney's Vivid, threatening to split pines trees asunder, and flooding 5 river systems across the state.

In South-East Queensland, clean-up crews are expecting a full day of work, with wild weather partially flooding several homes, sweeping away cars and possibly contributing to a double fatality on the roads.

Queensland: A severe weather warning for abnormally high tides and dangerous surf remains in place for people in parts of the Wide Bay and Burnett and Southeast Coast Forecast Districts. Read it here. Flood warnings are also in place for parts of the state – find out more here.

New South Wales: A severe weather warning for destructive winds, heavy rainfall, abnormally high tides and damaging surf remains in place for people in the Metropolitan, Illawarra, South Coast and parts of the Northern Rivers, Mid North Coast, Hunter, Central Tablelands, Southern Tablelands and Snowy Mountains Forecast Districts. Read it here. Flood warnings are also in place for parts of the state – find out more here.

New South Wales and Queensland are battling wild weather conditions today as the Bureau of Meteorology issues severe weather warnings for both states.

Damaging winds, heavy rainfall, abnormally high tides and damaging surf have been predicted for both NSW and Queensland.

Two people have been killed in a crash near Ipswich, southwest of Brisbane.

A Queensland Ambulance Service spokeswoman said it appeared a truck had jack-knifed, colliding with a van on the Warrego Highway near Ipswich about 8am.

The man was declared dead at the scene, with the spokeswoman later confirming his female passenger had also passed away. Read more here.

State Emergency Service volunteers have rescued five people from a car trapped in floodwaters near Murwillumbah in north-east NSW, spokesman Phil Campbell said.

The SES has responded to about 950 calls in NSW, 700 or so of these relating to fallen trees and branches. 

The rest have related to flooding. 

In Queensland, SES crews have been called to more than 750 jobs and firefighters have had to attend several flooded cars.

A low pressure system developing off the Queensland coast is forming quickly and moving fast sending emergency services into action mode and they are asking the community to do the same.

Up to 150mm of rain will fall across south east Queensland over the weekend, as people are urged not to "put themselves in peril". 

"We have been preparing for the last couple of days to ensure our resources are prepared and equipment ready," Queensland Fire and Emergency Services deputy commissioner Mark Roche said on Friday.

"Not only swift water rescue but also SES volunteers, rural fire staff and also emergency management teams. And we are talking with local government and other agencies to ensure we are prepared."

Queensland Police acting assistant commissioner Paul Fleming reiterated the ongoing message of "if it's flooded, forget it".

"Our primary concern is community safety," he said.

"If the road has markers saying do not cross here, do not cross.

"We don't want you to endanger you or your family's life."

The Bureau of Meteorology originally forecast the storm would arrive on Saturday afternoon but the system has evolved and become faster moving and is now heading over the south east corner.

- Brisbane Times

MUCH of the state is expecting a drenching of rain this weekend.

The wet forecast has seen flood watches issued by the Bureau of Meteorology for north east inland river valleys and coastal river valleys from the Queensland border to Port Macquarie and the Hunter from Saturday.

Moree is expecting a weekend of rain with heavy falls and thunderstorms possible.

The Bureau has forecast 25 to 70 millimetres of rain for the area on Saturday and 4-15mm on Sunday.

Walgett is expecting 15-45mm on Saturday, while Coonamble is expecting 20-60mm.

Guyra is forecast for 25-70mm on Saturday and a follow-up 10-35mm on Sunday.

Further north and Tenterfield is forecast to get 30-80mm on Saturday and 15-45mm on Sunday.

Into the Hunter Valley and Scone is expecting 10-30mm on Saturday and 15-40mm on Sunday. 

In the Central West Dubbo is forecast to get 25-70mm on Saturday and 8-25mm on Sunday.

While further south lower falls are predicted at Griffith with just 1-10mm forecast on the weekend, while Wagga is expecting 8-30mm on Saturday and a heavier 20-60mm on Sunday.

Agronomist Bob Freebairn said if forecasts for weekend rain proved to be correct, as much as 90 per cent of the state could be well set for winter.

"What we're really looking for is a good run-off event, it's been three years out here and in some places there has not been a lot off run off since 2011.”

The weekend predictions follow on from rain falls across the state last week, which boosted farmers’ soil profiles and confidence for the season. 

However, others are still desperately needing follow up rain to get dry sown crops established and potentially, a run-off event. 

Welcomed falls of rain hit the North West late last week, but showers were reported patchy.

B&W agronomist, Luke Find, North Star, said the Moree region received between 8 to 20mm, with most farmers receiving about 10mm.

Mr Fing said the rain certainly helped crops that were out of the ground, but didn’t do a lot of good for crops that were dry sown.

With more rain predicted, Mr Fing said people were taking a gamble and planting chickpeas on the back of a promising forecast.

“The rain was good, it got confidence up for this bit of predicted rain to come through,” he said.

The Bureau of Meteorology recorded falls of 17.4mm for Narrabri, 9.4mm for Gunnedah and 16.8mm for Tamworth late last week.  

This month, Deniliquin has received 99.8mm of rain and Wagga Wagga has had 90mm, with a most recent fall of 15mm last week. 

After a couple of good frosts the winter herbage is kicking in around Coonabarabran.

The Central and Central West Tablelands region have finished the month of May with solid rainfall. 

Late last week, Orange received 35mm, Hargraves topped the region with 37mm, and Bigga had a fall of 36mm. 

Cowra had a fall of 19mm, Dubbo and Wellington received falls of 19 to 22mm.

Elders agronomist Peter Watt, Cowra, said the local area would end the month with about 120mm.

Given the area has received double the monthly rainfall average, Mr Watt said growers would not be looking for further soakings.

“It’s all coming up beautifully,” he said.

Heavy rain is forecast for the Maranoa, Warrego, southern and east coast regions on Friday and Saturday off the back of record breaking warm and dry autumn conditions across much of the state.

Rain in some parts has prompted events to be cancelled or postponed, including the  50th anniversary Landsborough Flock Ewe Show at Muttaburra, north of Longreach.

Weather Bureau forecasters expect falls to range from 20mm to 40mm in the interior but the east coast inland to the Great Dividing Range south of Bundaberg to the NSW border will be thumped with wild weather and falls to 200mm.

In the south east corner, the Redlands is in for some thumping weather, with torrential rain, wind gusts to 100km/hr and flooding in low lying areas forecast.

The heaviest falls - potentially to 200mm in some places - will be on Saturday, continuing into early Sunday but easing later.

Bureau of Meteorology has predicted unseasonably heavy rain for parts of the Scenic Rim despite a hot and dry autumn.

The heaviest rain was predicted for Saturday by the bureau with a 95 per cent chance of rain across the region.

In North West Queensland, above average winter rainfall has been forecast for the region this year.

“Already having received 15.6mm for the first two days of June we forecast a wetter than average June, with winter rainfall likely to be above average across most of the mainland,” Mount Isa BOM spokesperson Les Lever said.