CLANCY OVERELL | Editor | CONTACT

Over the least 24 hours, the east coast of Australia has experienced great reprieve from drought and bushfires.

Widespread showers and thunderstorms have dumped more than 100 millimetres across parts of drought-stricken Queensland – resulting in hundreds of fist fights outside licensed pubs across the state.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said the biggest falls were in the southern inland with Bawnduggie, north of Chinchilla, recording 150 millimetres since 9:00am yesterday and over 70 or so punch-ons between the oil and gas roughnecks who can’t come into work because of the wet steel.

Broadmere, north-west of Taroom, received 148mm, most of that in just two hours.

BOM said Jandowae on the Western Downs recorded 102mm and Mt Barney in the Scenic Rim had 112mm.

New South Wales has also experienced an abundance of rainfall with the Bureau of Meteorology reporting that 126 millimetres had fallen in Boonanghi on the North Coast – as a well as Bulahdehlah, on the Mid-north Coast who recieved 105 millimetres by 9am.

While the BOM monitors the rainfall vigilantly, the amount of tradies being told to not come into work today is also a fair indication of how wet it is.

In Queensland particularly, where the working day had already begun before the rain, construction workers have been sent to the pub after more than two drops of water landed on the tally-ho.

The subsequent result has seen thousands upon thousands of scaffolders and bricklayers drinking themselves into oblivion for their first ever rain day in years – perfectly timed for a long weekend.

As the day wears on, pubs around the country are now putting out trays of complimentary springies and puff pastries – as their pokies take an absolute caning from the tsunami of hi-vis.

As reported by the BOM, old grudges are also being put on the table, as colleagues punch their way through long-buried grievances.

“We are seeing a lot of tradies absolutely lifting each other outside hundreds of pubs down the east coast right now” said one spokeswoman from the Bureau.

“That’s when you know we’ve had some good bloody rain”