FLOOD warning has been issued by the National Weather Service after one of the highest rainfalls in a day was recorded in Port Moresby.
The deluge began on Monday afternoon and continued till yesterday afternoon, flooding parts of the city and damaging food crops and poultry in at least one suburb.
Up until 10am yesterday, Port Moresby recorded 143.2mm of rainfall — the highest recorded for the month of November in 30 years.
“This is unprecedented. That is a huge amount,” acting director of National Weather Service Sam Maiha said.
He said although the onset of a rainy season varies, on average an onset was about the first week of December. But this year, conditions favoured an early onset, although an onset takes five days of continuous rain to be confirmed.
Mr Maiha said PNG was experiencing the La Nina season, and the country could expect a lot of rain for the next three months.
“So we can expect a lot of rain and a lot of flooding, and people need to be aware of this,” he said.
He said the rainy season will be across the country and not only in Port Moresby.
The highest rainfall ever recorded in Port Moresby was 305mm, which fell on May 24, 1994, some 13 years ago.