Overdue showers are set to fall on the Sunshine Coast, after months of unusually dry conditions.
Some welcome wet weather should make its presence felt in the region during the next four or five days, after an unseasonal summer and start to autumn.
Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Felim Hanniffy said it was about time.
“This shower activity will probably be welcomed, by many people,” he said.
“It has been significantly dry across the Sunshine Coast this year.
“During the wet season, the rain only fell in bursts with storms and it was hit and miss.
“So, the Sunshine Coast in general received less than 40 per cent of what it normally would, and in some places, it was more like 20 per cent.”
Maroochydore only received 310mm from January to April this year. The mean is 691mm.
And less than 1mm had fallen so far this month, despite a May mean of 166mm.
Some areas of the Sunshine Coast had received even less rainfall.
Mr Hanniffy said the region could get between 25mm to 50mm during the next few days.
“There should be an uptick in showers on Thursday and it could increase during the weekend and into next week, before it should turn cooler and drier during the second half of next week,” he said.
Mr Hanniffy said the wet weather was due to a strong high-pressure system moving over the south-east states and into the Tasman Sea.
“It’s going to push more of a south-easterly across the Sunny Coast and bring those showers in,” he said.
“And we’ll have a couple of upper features moving across the south-east of the state as well, aiding moisture and increasing instability and shower activity.”
The Sunshine Coast was confronted by a rare cold snap earlier this week, when Maroochydore recorded its lowest minimum for May (3.3 degrees Celsius).
But some warmer conditions should be associated with the wet weather this weekend.
“It should be a change from the recent dry, cool pattern,” Mr Hanniffy said.
“The overnight minimums should be much milder, in double digits. Gone are those cold nights we had earlier in the week.
“We might get some cooler nights late next week with a dry, southerly air flow, but not as cold as this week.”
Mr Hanniffy said there could be surf up to 1.5m.
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