Heavy rains in Western Australia damaged crops prior to harvesting.

The weather system that moved through the southern part of Western Australia over the weekend brought heavy rainfall, in places approaching the 100-millimetre mark. This follows one of the driest Julys on record in the South West Land Division.

As a result of 48 hours of continuous rainfall, some crops were affected. In particular, oats lodged, which will force farmers to use swathing or pick them up from the ground with a combine harvester. In addition, waterlogged fields delayed the haymaking scheduled for the beginning of the week. The approaching harvesting season requires dry weather for the fields and crops to dry out.

Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Grace Abbott reported that the system that crossed the coast on Sunday evening has begun to weaken. Light to moderate precipitation is expected on the south coast on Monday and Tuesday, while on Wednesday a cold front will bring 1 to 5 millimetres of rain, with localized precipitation of up to 10 millimetres on the coast.

At the same time, about 200 kilometres to the north, farmers are facing a precipitation deficit. Gnowangerup farmer Tim House said that one of his plots received 2 millimetres of precipitation and the second received 19 millimetres, while the main rain clouds bypassed them. Following a dry year that brought about 200 millimetres of precipitation, the farmer is hoping for an additional 10–15 millimetres of rain. According to him, the moisture received over the weekend, provided there are no other problems, will make it possible to expect an average harvest.