Australia Weather News

Two-year-old James Walker from Camden Park near Longreach has enjoyed the rain. His family has received 111mm over the last 10 days — it is the most rain the toddler has seen in his life. - ABC

The first week of February has delivered some much needed rain to parts of drought-affected western Queensland, with some properties recording their best falls in six years.

However, the rain was still patchy, with many missing out.

But for those who caught some liquid gold in their rain gauge, it has been a godsend.

John Paine from Daintree Station east of Winton measured 159 millimetres of rain on Wednesday night.

"It is wonderful to see, especially falling on this green grass," he said.

"We have measured 173mm between Christmas and now.

"So it is just wonderful."

He said it was the best rain he had seen in six years.

"You probably have to go back to 2010 to have anything like this," he said.

"In April 2010 we measured a 163mm fall."

To the east of Mr Paine, around Aramac, more than 100mm of rain was reported the same night.

Stainburn Station just outside of town measured 141mm while neighbour Andrew Cowper at Merino Downs measured 90mm.

"This week we have been very lucky we have got 90mm in the front paddock and that was on top of 15mm the day before," Mr Cowper said.

"We seem to have got a lot of erosion because there is no grass to hold the water up … but well worth the price I can assure you."

For many in the west, this week was the first opportunity they have had to post rainfall totals on the Who Got the Rain [WGTR] Facebook page, sending it into overdrive.

Longreach grazier and administrator to the page Jenny Gordon said she was waking up to more than 100 notifications and 50 new group friend requests.

"It is really wonderful," she said.

"The other morning we woke and there was lightning all around and I went on [to Facebook] and I thought 'Oh I'll just go and put this on but everyone will think I am barmy at 5:30am putting this on' and I got on there and I was late.

"There were people who had already beaten me, they were up there, they were reporting things.

"It is wonderful to think that out there in the big wide world is all us people sitting with our morning cup of coffee checking to see where the rain has been or reporting that we have had rain and posting those wonderful photos.

"It is really good."

Patchy rain means some still missing out

Sadly, not everyone has been able to post about rain with storms only delivering patchy falls.

Jenny Gordon said the night she received 20mm of rain, properties 15 kilometres down the road received nothing.

"That is how patchy these systems are," she said.

"If you are under them, you are lucky and if you are not, you are missing out.

"You read today [on WGTR Facebook] a gentleman reported that he had to go through rain as he trucked his livestock away to sell because he has nothing at home and he is getting rid of the last of his stock.

"That is when it jumps up and it hits you that there are still these gaps and we still have people missing out.

"We just have to pray and hope that this system is the start of what is to follow and not just a one-off."

Even though John Paine received 159mm on his Winton property, he said it was still patchy across the property.

"All this rain is fairly confined to the house; around the run it is very patchy," he said.

"We have got, especially on our eastern end, country that has been missing out for a few years.

"I know our neighbour over that side had 2mm last night (the same night John received 159mm).

"So I would really like to see it go and rain on a lot of other people who have been missing out.

"That is our hope now, that it spreads out and fills a few more rain gauges."

ABC