Across Australia’s capital city, Canberra, more than 11,000 people were left without power as a storm rolled over the city. Monday night local time, (Monday morning GMT) several suburbs experienced total power outages. Queanbeyan, near Canberra, and areas close by were the worst affected, as most of the area were in the dark from just after 8.45pm (9.45am GMT).
Other suburbs affected by the lack of power included Rivett, Forrest, Griffith and Narrabundah.
Most customers saw power restored before 11pm (12.00pm GMT), however, Karabar remained without electricity at midnight (1.00pm GMT).
The Bureau of Meteorology stated that more than 31mm of rain fell on Canberra from 8.40pm to midnight (9.40am – 1.00pm GMT).
There was also more than 1,500 people who found themselves evacuated from the Canberra Theatre Centre.
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They were left standing in the rain due to a fire alarm shortly after 9.00pm (10.00am GMT).
The crowd had been watching Ru Paul’s Drag Race tour when firefighters were called.
Andrew Brown, a reporter with The Sunday Canberra Times, was at the show and said: “There was the smell of smoke in the auditorium and everyone has been evacuated out.
“Everyone is scrambling for cover under the assembly because it’s pouring down.”
The crowd was let back inside the theatre at about 9.30pm (10.30am GMT).
The warning for the thunderstorm has since been cancelled by the Bureau of Meteorology, but residual rain and gathering water remains a problem on roads.
One resident tweeted: “There is a LOT of water over Parkes Way westbound just before the Anzac Pde roundabout. Please be careful!”
This storm comes after a run of hot days and sudden storms, cascading thunder and lightning onto the capital.
Australia’s south-east continues to swelter through a heatwave, with temperatures reaching a staggering 46.6 C (116 F).
The heatwave, which has seen temperatures above 40 degrees for several days straight in some areas, was mainly due to a high-pressure system off the southeast coast that blocked cooler air from coming in, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
In fact, January was the hottest month in Australia on record.
Andrew Watkins, a senior climatologist at the bureau said: “For maximum temperatures, for minimum temperatures and for mean temperatures, it’s not only been our hottest January on record, it’s actually been our hottest month on record, and those records go back to 1910.”
CSIRO scientist Grose told CNN that analysis of previous Australian heatwaves had found a “very clear” relation to human-caused climate change.
“We’re expecting more heat extremes and more records to be broken in the future, as well as a greater incident of heatwaves,” he said.