Winter’s dry start washed away

Bickley is the wettest place in the lower south-west region of WA this month.

It has been deluged by 265mm of rain, including 80mm on a single day on August 8.

The average for August is just 170mm.

The monthly rainfall figure was well ahead of the 240mm that fell on Karnet, near Serpentine, and 194mm at Dwellingup, near Pinjarra.

But the 790mm of rain that has fallen on Bickley so far this year is still well short of its January-August average of 852mm.

Kalamunda has had a wet month with more than 260mm of rain ” short of its record of 306mm set in 2006.

Down the hill it was wet in Midland, with 136mm falling so far this month, taking rainfall in 2013 to 468mm but still well short of the average of 617mm for this time of year.

About 154mm has fallen on Perth in August ” ahead of the monthly average of 133mm.

The city recorded 338mm so far this winter ” well short of its average of 477mm, which it has not reached since 2000.

There have been some good falls in the eastern and northern Wheatbelt, but they are patchy across the regions.

Gingin has had 157mm, which tops the previous wettest August of 141.2mm recorded in 2006.

Toodyay and Northam have received above-average winter rainfall but are still well short of their yearly averages.

According to eldersweather. com, warmer than average seasons should help keep rainfall slightly above the median in the lower south-west of WA during spring and into summer .

But January is expected to produce rainfall well above the average before falls return to normal in autumn.