Gold Coast on track for driest January on record with no rain in sight

It’s been a dry and hot start to the year and there’s no end in sight, as meteorologists say this is the Coast’s driest January on record.

THERE’S no rain in sight as the Gold Coast reaches the end of what could be the driest January ever recorded.

The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed it had only rained five times this month and across the city an average of just 3.8mm had fallen.

The figure is dramatically below the long-term average of 171.7mm for January in the past several years, with just 51.6mm in 2018.

WeatherZone meteorologist Jacob Cronje said Coolangatta’s records showed an alarming trend.

Many are switching to drought-friendly plants and buying bird baths for wildlife. Pic Mike Batterham

“It could be one of the driest years since we had recording capabilities in 1983, at Coolangatta’s airport specifically,” he said.

“The driest on record for the Coast was 11.4mm in January, and that was in 2003.

“Just looking at what we’re expecting for the remainder of the month, there is some expected rainfall, very light into next weekend, but that’s already February.”

Mr Cronje was unable to say when there would be any substantial rainfall within the next month.

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“There’s no indication of any significant rainfall in the next 10 days,” he said.

“It’s very likely there will be no substantial rainfall on the cards for the rest of summer ... At the moment it’s looking like below average rainfall expected every month until April.”

The information comes as average temperatures also soar, with the mercury currently sitting about 1C above average, during the day and overnight.

Michael Mapperson is keeping his plants alive with dam water. Pic Mike Batterham

Greenlife Garden Centre manager, Michael Mapperson, said conditions hadn’t affected their business, but locals were making the choice between drinking water and keeping their gardens alive.

“A lot of the houses out here (Mount Nathan) are on tank water, quite a few customers have said they’ve had to purchase water to drink and shower,” he said.

“You can tell even driving out here how dry it is, the lawns are all dying. We’ve had quite a few people coming in to buy bird baths for wild life … because they’re not drinking either.”

Today will be 31C and partly cloudy, with higher temperatures expected in the city’s west.