Thousands without power as Brisbane swelters through 39-degree heat after wild storms

Tens of thousands of homes remain without power after destructive storms, as south-east Queensland swelters through another scorcher with the mercury in parts of Brisbane reaching 39 degrees Celsius on Monday afternoon – the hottest October day since 1957.

Hailstones the size of golf balls and wind gusts reaching 96 kilometres per hour were recorded after a severe thunderstorm tore through south-east Queensland on Sunday evening.

A lightning bolt captured from Boondall on Brisbane’s northside. (ABC News: Emma Pollard)

Almost 30,000 homes remain without power on Monday, after more than 70,000 were impacted.

State Emergency Service (SES) crews from units across south-east Queensland and Brisbane responded to more than 950 requests for assistance.

Around 700 jobs remain outstanding as crews continue their recovery efforts.

The largest hail reported during the storms measured 7 centimetres in diameter at St Lucia.

11 Brisbane schools have also been forced to close due to power outages, including Stuartholme School near Toowong, which announced on social media it would remain shut today after losing power overnight. 

Brigidine College at Indooroopilly, and Centenary State High School in Jindalee are also closed. Ipswich West Special School has confirmed it will remain closed today as restoration efforts continue.

In Brisbane’s inner south, a house under renovation at Highgate Hill was left badly damaged after it toppled off its stilts during the height of Sunday’s storm.

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Severe heatwave conditions will persist across the central and southern parts of the state on Monday, with the mercury rising to 10 degrees above average in some places, while the far north is expected to be about four degrees warmer than usual.

The mercury at Brisbane Airport reached 39.1C on Monday, while the CBD topped out at 38.7C – a temperature last reached in 2004.

Both of those temperatures were on par with some of the hottest October days on record, the BOM said.

Senior meteorologist Felim Hanniffy described the weather as “stinking hot”, saying the lack of sea breeze was driving the “notable near-October records”.

Parts of the Gold Coast reached mid-30s as well.

The BOM has warned of “extreme” fire danger across parts of the state’s south-east due to the combination of heat and westerly winds.

Several bushfires are burning at advice level in the state’s south-east. 

Senior meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said the temperature will soon drop significantly, falling to 21C on Tuesday before climbing again later in the week.

“It’s going to be very, very warm [today],” Ms Bradbury said.Severe thunderstorm hits south-east Queensland

South-east Queensland’s energy network was “absolutely smashed” as severe thunderstorms brought large hail and strong winds.

“There is a burst of cooler air that’s going to come up from the south — the relief is in sight.

“It’s going to be short-lived, but there definitely is going to be a day or two of respite.”

The bureau has advised people to keep an eye on the warnings and radar as the extreme heat increases the chance of thunderstorms developing on Monday evening.

The Capricornia and Wide Bay regions are most at risk, with the potential for damaging winds, large hail and heavy rainfall that could lead to flash flooding.

“We have really moved into a very summer-like weather pattern where we have a daily risk of thunderstorms,” Ms Bradbury said.

The Queensland Ambulance Service’s Lisa Dibley said paramedics had been responding to an increased demand for services across the state’s south-east which included “heat-related illnesses”.

She said call volumes in the days following a heat wave were expected to remain high, and encouraged people to check in on more vulnerable family and community members.

Brisbane is expected to swelter through Monday. (ABC News: Jay Carstens)

Cool change on the way Dry spring heading for a course correction as La Niña emerges

A predicted wetter-than-normal season has failed to materialise, and much of NSW, Queensland and the NT are sweating through their hottest October on record.

A cool change on Tuesday will bring with it rain for much of the east coast, with widespread falls of 15 to 40mm forecast for as far north as Townsville and possibly Cairns.

Ms Bradbury said the unseasonally hot spring was a sign of what’s in store for Christmas.

“Unfortunately, for those who are a bit sick of the heat, the likelihood is that we will continue to see this unusually hot weather into summer,” she said.

Clean-up begins 

Sherwood resident Rebecca Sinfiele and her son Adam said they were without power on Monday. 

Kirsty Crowe and her son Finn started a clean-up at their house in Graceville.

In Graceville, residents are assessing the impact on their homes and cars following the storm. (ABC News: Molly Slattery)

“Our pool is just full of debris, there’s pine leaves in there from trees down the road that have blown all the way up here,” Ms Crowe said. 

Thousands of homes in Brisbane’s west are still off the grid with Kenmore, Indooroopilly and Brookfield some of the worst affected.

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Ms Sinfiele said strong winds and large hail stones in their area made for a frightening night in the suburb.

“It was quite scary actually it seemed quite unexpected,” she said.

The goal posts at the QAFL club were pulled down by falling trees.

“It’s a shame here for the club cause they’ve gone through the floods in previous years.”

A Darling Downs family said a “freak storm” wreaked havoc on their Westbrook property. (Supplied)

A family in Westbrook, in Queensland’s Darling Downs region said a “freak storm” wreaked havoc on their property.

“It was like driving into a war zone,” Emma Wager said. 

“All the windows were shut, yet the water still came in, seeping through every downlight … it was very sad.”

Ms Wager described large gum trees uprooted across their 200-acre property, with furniture scattered across the backyard and power lines downed.

“We’ve had gum trees ripped from their roots, and almost every tree has lost most of its branches,” she said.

A fallen tree on Gem Road (ABC News: Arianna Levy)

4,000 insurance claims made 

Speaking on Monday morning, the Insurance Council of Australia said insurance claims from storm damage were already being lodged.

Deputy CEO Kylie Macfarlane said just under 4,000 had been received – mostly for damaged cars and homes.

“The damage at the moment is both hail damage and fallen trees,” she said.

“As you’d anticipate, both can cause a lot of damage to your motor vehicles and your home.”

Ms Macfarlane encouraged people to prepare their homes for storm season, describing yesterday’s weather event as a “timely reminder”.

She also said people should take photos of the serial numbers of electrical items to ensure making a claim was easier in the event of something happening.

On Sunday, the Bureau of Meteorology issued widespread warnings, covering parts of Brisbane, Moreton Bay, Redlands, Logan, the Sunshine Coast, Noosa, South Burnett and the Gold Coast.

Further warnings were also issued for the Wide Bay-Burnett, Southeast Coast and parts of the Central Highlands, Coalfields, Capricornia, Darling Downs and Granite Belt districts.