South Australia August Rainfall Records Broken, Communications Outage and Water Rescue Occur

Record August Rainfall

Heavy rain across South Australia on August 25, 2026, broke daily August rainfall records in multiple areas. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, Mount Lofty recorded 56mm, Port Lincoln 49mm, Parawa 45mm, Edithburgh 44mm, and Cummins 35mm. Lenswood in the Adelaide Hills recorded 65mm, the highest rainfall in the state.

The Adelaide West Terrace observation station recorded 29mm, bringing the August cumulative rainfall to 97mm. Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Michael Conway stated this figure is in the top 10 percent for August.

Communications Outage and Emergency Response

Telstra announced a communications service outage in Yorktown and surrounding areas in southern Yorke Peninsula. Major transmission equipment inside the Yorktown exchange was damaged by flooding from heavy rain. Telstra technicians are working to procure replacement parts to restore service. Affected areas include Coobowie, Edithburgh, Marion Bay, Point Turton, Port Moorowie, Stenhouse Bay, and Warooka.

The State Emergency Service (SES) responded to approximately 90 callouts on Monday and over 20 since midnight. Requests were concentrated in the Adelaide Hills, Mount Lofty Ranges, and Oakbank areas.

River Flooding and Water Rescue

The Bureau of Meteorology issued a minor flooding warning for the Onkaparinga River. It warned of possible minor flooding in the Clarendon Weir and Old Noarlunga areas early Tuesday morning. SES responded to a swift water rescue operation at Currency Creek, where the Country Fire Service (CFS) had already arrived on scene.

SES state duty officer Brad Flew stated roads around Sellicks Beach and Aldinga were also flooded, and volunteers are expected to be busy throughout the day with additional rainfall and trees falling due to strong winds.

Source: ABC News