World News – UA – Nearly 29,000 homes without power as storms hit southeast Queensland

The Melbourne Cup Carnival will take place, but no spectators will be allowed in Flemington for the four-day racing festival, the Victoria Racing Club says

Nearly 29,000 homes in South East Queensland have lost power due to destructive winds, lightning strikes and heavy rains, according to Energex

Energex, meanwhile, has recorded more than 1,500 lightning strikes in the area, and hail hits the western and southern suburbs of Brisbane

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) issued a severe storm warning on Sunday afternoon for the City Council areas of Ipswich, Logan, Somerset, Scenic Rim, Lockyer Valley, Gold Coast, Redland City and Brisbane

Energex said more than 6,700 people lost power in Brisbane, while 10,817 customers in Ipswich and around 9,000 in Redland were affected

BOM meteorologist Michael Gray said Monday would be a drier day, but Tuesday was likely to bring a new wave of rainy weather anywhere between Townsville and the New Wales border of the South

« There is an upper low developing over New South Wales which will bring more over the next few days, » he said

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AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time, which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)

Hail, Bureau of Meteorology, Queensland, Thunderstorm, Storm Warning, Brisbane