Cyclone Narelle: Storm chaos eases but threat lingers over parts of WA

The wild ride of ex-tropical cyclone Narelle is easing but not before unleashing a string of unpredictable hits across WA.

As the system weakened after crossing the coast near Coral Bay, attention has turned to the messy, lingering weather left in its wake.

Amateur weather forecaster Joshua Toohey, who runs the CyclonesOZ YouTube page, said the storm’s rapid collapse likely spared coastal towns from something far worse.

“It was still a massive impact but it could have actually been a whole lot worse,” he told 6PR.

After making landfall as a category 3 system, Narelle quickly pushed inland and started to fall apart.

“It lost its inner core, the structure eroded and the thunderstorms became disorganised,” Mr Toohey said.

“When that happens, the wind speeds begin to reduce and that was actually a very good thing for places like Coral Bay and Carnarvon.”

However, the system still packed a punch as it tracked through the Gascoyne and into the Wheatbelt before weakening into a low.

The focus has shifted to lingering storms including a severe thunderstorm warning for parts of Perth’s south and into Mandurah.

The Bureau of Meteorology has detected a slow-moving cell near Ravenswood, tracking towards Pinjarra.

Mr Toohey said that while the worst of the rain had fallen, conditions remained unstable.

“There’ll be the odd rumble of thunder over the next couple of hours but for the most part, the rain is beginning to pull away,” he said.

Perth has already copped a solid soaking with some areas — particularly in Hills — recording more than 100mm overnight.

“Everything’s saturated, it’ll go green in the next 24 hours. It was beautiful to see,” Mr Toohey said.

Further inland, the rain has delivered a timely boost.

Parts of the Wheatbelt have recorded 20mm to 40mm, with falls up to 50mm expected as the system tracks south.

“It’s exactly what they’re after this time of year — it’s loosened the ground up nicely and topped up tanks,” Mr Toohey said.

Importantly, the rainfall has avoided the extremes seen further north.

“We’re not seeing massive flooding rainfall but we’re also not seeing too little. It’s really good news for the Wheatbelt.”