April Rain – TC Tam 2025

Last month the Norfolk Island community was excited to finally get rain water to fill the water tanks and water the gardens. During the past couple of years, the rain gages have not received the normal rain, and we have recorded almost half of the average rain last year with only about 700mm for 2024.

Over the summer months we have learn to save every drop of water, and re-using water in every way we could, from saving the water in the shower for the gardens or washing machine, using the dishes water to rinse the next dishes, along with short showers, and flush the toilets only when needed.

Many households were buying in water with the local tanker truck operators, and the seawater desalination water plant was also running to assist with supplies. Here on Norfolk Island, we all have water tanks and collect rain water for our water supply. Some households have ground bores, and others collect extra water from Kingston or Headstone with water tanks on their trucks for their gardens and animals and stock.

In March there were a couple of brief rain falls, and we all watched TC Alfred, hoping the tropical storm would share some much needed rainwater with us, but it sent bucket loads of water to QLD and NSW, Australia. On 17 March we felt happy to get 21mm, and then the occasional passing shower, many of then very brief.

Just before Easter, Tropical Cyclone Tam formed near New Caledonia and Vanuatu, and it was heading south towards Norfolk Island and then onto New Zealand where it developed into a severe sub-tropical storm, with flooding , power outages, massive swells and road closures. TC Tam was Cat 1, and the weather system was windy with large swells and heavy rain. Norfolk Islanders felt blessed to finally have a few days of rain. The Norfolk Island Met Weather Office rain gage stopped working during the night, but a site I follow recorded over 156mm followed by another 70mm the next day. Locals recorded around 200mm of rain, so about 7-8 inches of wonderful water, which filled the water tanks, watered the gardens and filled up the wetlands at Kingston. With the warm weather, it didn’t take long for the island to green up, you could almost watch the grass grow, followed a week or so later, the sound of lawn mowers which we have not heard very often over the summer months.

The Kingston wetland water also broke through the sand plug and the swamp water rushed into Emily Bay and public warnings were given advised “not to swim” in the Kingston lagoon until the water tested safe for swimmers.

During TC Tam Qantas flights from Brisbane, Sydney and Air Chathams from Auckland, New Zealand were postponed until after the stormy weather passed.

I have read that the average rainfall for Norfolk Island is approx 1100mm.

Norfolk Island climate: average weather, temperature, rain - Climates to Travel

Norfolk Island Rain Data 2024- 2025

Follow this link for Australia Weather observations for Norfolk Island. BOM

Norfolk Island - May 2025 - Daily Weather Observations

April 2024 – March 2025 approximately 703.2mm

April 2025 Norfolk Island recorded 242mm, about 34% of what was recorded in the previous 12 months.

There were only two months with over 100mm of rain in the past year, last winter, July 2024 with 127mm and June 2024 131.8mm.

2025 Tropical Cyclone Tam, 14 April – 168mm + 15 April 28.6mm = 196mm.

Though please note that the BOM rain gage did stop working during the storm and locals did record over 200mm or 7 -8 inches of rain

Here are a few photos I took at Kingston and of the dams, as well as a few public notices. Apologies it has taken a couple of weeks to share this news update with readers, the past few weeks were busy. But as this was a significant weather event with Norfolk Island finally getting rain, I thought it was important to share the details with the Norfolk Online News readers.

Betty Matthews

9 May 2025