VIDEOS capture frolicking cows and saturated Sydney as rain brings relief to Australia’s scorched south-east
When it rains it pours. After weeks of punishing drought, bushfire-plagued south-eastern Australia has been hit by torrential rain, prompting a flood of excitement among Australians and actual floods in Sydney.
Heavy rain and thunderstorms rolled into New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland on Friday dampening raging fires, much to the relief of firefighters and farmers who have been battling blazes since September.
The all-too-rare weather unleashed an outpouring of joy on social media with locals excitedly sharing photos and videos of the long-awaited rain.
Best day of the year so far. #rain#sydneystorm#sydneyrain@cityofsydney#rainydaypic.twitter.com/MNUxqOuCC8
— Paul Upham (@pauljupham) January 16, 2020
I'm in the Manning Valley which was hit by #AustralianBushfiresDisaster in November (and ever since), near the town of Bobin which was destroyed.Today's #SydneyRain is very welcome here. Its raining cats & dogs = I'm out jumping in poodles (dad joke)Have a great day 😅 pic.twitter.com/VQtXj1UbBV
— 💧 Mark Anning 🔥🔥🔥 (@1EarthMedia) January 16, 2020
Sports broadcaster Paul Upham declared Friday “the best day of the year” while a herd of cattle has gone viral due to their excited, downpour-inspired antics.
These guys are happy - 6 month old calves feeling #rain for the first time @ABCRuralpic.twitter.com/95JoCJJvMk
— Eliza Goetze (@elizagoetze) January 16, 2020
Firefighters welcomed the rain but said it would not extinguish all the fires. “Our fingers are crossed that this continues over the coming days,” New South Wales fire services said on Twitter, adding that 82 fires are still burning across the state.
Sydney received more rain on Friday than it had in three months and the New South Wales capital struggled to cope with the deluge. The difficult conditions prompted heavy traffic and train cancellations and streets quickly filled with rushing rainwater.
Rain in #Sydneypic.twitter.com/9hPEKxwEwh
— Muriel Demarcus (@MurielDemarcus) January 17, 2020
On fire one day, under water the next 🤷🏻♂️ #WeRiseWithTheOcean#SydneyRainpic.twitter.com/mKRdG4qr10
— Joshua Small (@Joshua_107) January 17, 2020
Bushfires have killed at least 29 people in Australia this season as well as claiming the lives of millions of animals and destroying over 2,000 homes.
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