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Heavens open up over Kimberley as Broome, Derby lashed by lightning and rain from ex-tropical cyclone Tiffany

Sam JonesBroome Advertiser
A spectacular lightning storm lit up the Broome skies overnight.
Camera IconA spectacular lightning storm lit up the Broome skies overnight. Credit: Tom Zaunmayr

The night skies over Broome lit up for the first proper storm of the 2022 wet season last night, with 9.8mm of rain falling over the townsite.

Beginning just after midnight on January 14, hundreds of lightning bolts lit up the skies in what is considered a late start for the sweltering rainy season.

The light show comes just days after a small pocket of the Kimberley was revealed as one of the world’s most active lightning zones in a 20-year collation of satellite data compiled by NASA.

The rains continued into the morning on the Dampier Peninsula, with Cygnet Bay recording 38mm of rain since 9am this morning.

Over in the East Kimberley, significant rainfall is expected throughout the weekend after ex-Tropical Cyclone Tiffany was located over the northern Kimberley moving west.

Wyndham recorded 65.8mm of rain overnight, while the skies over Kununurra opened up for 80.6mm.

The system is expected to remain a deep tropical low as it slowly tracks over the central Kimberley and curves south during the day.

Daily rainfall totals of 100-150mm are expected in parts of the East Kimberley, with sever weather warnings in place.

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