SYDNEY, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- Australians in the State of Queensland who have been battling bushfires for almost two weeks, could now face a different type of disaster, with the risk of flash flooding in place on Tuesday as thunderstorms descend on the area.
Strong winds from those storms could also fan flames and hamper the continued efforts of firefighters to bring the blazes under control.
The wild weather is the result of a tropical cyclone which formed off the coast of Queensland on Sunday evening and despite being downgraded to a tropical low, is still expected to move towards the coast, bringing winds and rain.
"We do have some showers and thunderstorms ahead of that system because it's very moist ahead of it, and that is over some of our fire affected area," Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Lauren Pattie told Xinhua.
Pattie said that the amount of rainfall predicted for fire affected areas, which normally wouldn't be considered a risk, may have a severe effect due to the conditions on the ground.
"Potentially because there is no trees and there's nothing holding the soil there those areas do become a bit more vulnerable to flash flooding and just general debris in the area when there is a storm," Pattie said.
"Areas that have bare earth or have just had fire move through, those rainfall figures could be significant even though usually they wouldn't be."
Meanwhile residents from the community of Deepwater have been told that it is safe to return to their homes after having been evacuated for more than a week.
