Unusual Summer Storm Dumps Up To 3 Feet Of Hail In Canberra, Australia - Reuters

[hatrack]

CANBERRA - Freak summer weather hit large areas of drought-hit Australia's east coast on Wednesday, with a hail storm leaving ice blanketed across the capital Canberra and torrential rain causing flash flooding in Sydney.

While thunder storms are common in Canberra in the last month of summer, the rare hail storm left the national capital resembling snow-bound cities in the United States, with tractors sent out to clear ice from busy roads. The hail storm forced some Canberra businesses and government departments to close due to storm and flood damage. It left metre-deep (3 ft) ice in parts of Canberra's central business district, and caused flooding and damage in over 60 buildings at the nearby Australian National University and the city's main shopping centre, which were closed for the day.

"I can't remember the last time we've actually received hail that has piled up on the roads in such a large amount," Owen Offler from Australia's Bureau of Meteorology told Reuters.

The storms hit on the last day of a hot summer in Australia, much of which is enduring its sixth year of drought. In Canberra, authorities have imposed strict restrictions on household water use due to low water levels in its reservoirs. Residents reported up to 70 millimetres (2.7 inches) of rain in an hour during the overnight storm, which also forced the evacuation of the top floor of the city's main police station.

EDIT

http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/40589/story.htm

[phantom power]

1. Wasn't there another freak hailstorm in Australia recently?

the one that froze the fucking sheep?

[donsu]

2. yeah, but wasn't it cattle? 3 feet of hail! geez

nt

[phantom power]

3. Oh right. Cows. Frozen cows.

OFHWAD.

[Systematic Chaos]

4. Bet those cows were pretty damn mad too.

:evilgrin:

[soothsayer]

5. that should help the drought!

[SheilaT]

6. Three feet of hail?

The mind boggles. Surely there was major damage to cars and buildings. I live in Kansas, and thanks to our delightful spring hailstorms, you can count on "Hail Damage" sales of cars most years. And we've never gotten more than maybe an inch or two piled up that I know of. Three feet? Wow.

[kestrel91316]

7. Well, they DO need the moisture..................