Storms knock out power in Australia

Approximately 50,000 people were without power Sunday after severe thunderstorms brought down trees in southeast Queensland, Australia, weather officials said. The storms knocked out power in Brisbane and Ipswich as gusts of winds up to 55 miles per hour were recorded, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported. Ipswich councillor Paul Tully said emergency crews won't know the extent of damage until Monday morning. "There were very intense winds, hail and very heavy rain," he said. "There was hail hitting cars outside the shopping center and most people were caught unawares because it moved in from the west very, very quickly." Mike Shapland of Emergency Management Queensland said crews will be working overnight to repair damage, the majority of which was to roofs. "The impact has largely been around the Logan area. Beaudesert and Jimboomba also copped some of that damage," he said. The Bureau of Meteorology said more than 1.5 inches of rain fell within 30 minutes at Carole Park and Brassal. The bureau said there could be more thunderstorm activity overnight in the southeast inland.