Severe Thunderstorms Batter Southeast Queensland and Damage Brisbane Airport

Severe thunderstorms swept across southeast Queensland, bringing destructive winds, giant hailstones measuring up to seven centimeters, and torrential rainfall that triggered flash flooding and widespread travel disruptions. The extreme weather system battered communities from the Sunshine Coast down toward the New South Wales border, leaving more than 1,000 households without electricity in areas such as Ipswich.

The Bureau of Meteorology issued urgent warnings for Brisbane, Logan, Ipswich, the Gold Coast, and the Scenic Rim as a powerful supercell moved across the region. Certain suburbs recorded more than one month's worth of rain in less than three hours. Weather stations in Caboolture measured 159 millimeters of rainfall by Tuesday morning, while nearby Morayfield and Burpengary reported 168 millimeters and 141 millimeters, respectively.

The severe weather caused rare infrastructure damage at Brisbane Airport when a lightning strike hit the center of the western runway at 3:11 p.m. on Tuesday. According to airport officials, the strike punched several hand-sized holes into the tarmac, an occurrence not seen at the facility in at least three decades. While the airport remained open utilizing its parallel eastern runway, the western runway closure forced hour-long delays and left some passengers requiring overnight accommodations.

Engineering crews worked overnight to cut out the affected sections and re-asphalt the tarmac, allowing the western runway to reopen for morning operations. Passenger Meddy Barr described the terrifying moment in the terminal, stating that the strike sounded "like a bomb went off." Other travelers reported that inbound flights were forced to circle overhead while waiting for clearance to land.

Emergency services also responded to multiple swiftwater rescue incidents across the Darling Downs region as rapidly rising floodwaters trapped motorists. Authorities rescued three individuals, including a 60-year-old man trapped near Warwick and a 57-year-old man stranded at Ellengowan, after police repeatedly warned drivers not to enter flooded roadways.

The severe storm activity follows a turbulent year for Australian weather. According to recent insurance data from PERILS, severe convective storms hitting Australia's east coast between late October and early November resulted in final industry-wide insured losses of AU$1,620 million, with Queensland bearing 94% of the financial impact. The Insurance Council of Australia noted that extreme weather events throughout the year pushed total insured losses to approximately $4.8 billion, driven largely by an increase in vulnerable assets and rising claim frequencies.