A noteworthy easterly wind event occurred across southwest WA from Friday into Saturday morning, triggering the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) to issue warnings for damaging winds across the Darling Escarpment, including for the Perth Hills and foothills area.

The fierce winds didn't just rattle fences and topple trees—they also disrupted international travel plans. One notable disruption was an Emirates Airbus A380 flight from Dubai, which found itself touching down in Melbourne instead of Perth, adding an unexpected 2,700 km detour and nearly four extra hours to what’s usually an 11-hour journey. Safe to say, passengers weren’t exactly flying high with joy. 

Some significant wind gusts recorded during the event included: 

-94 km/h at Gooseberry Hill at 8:31 pm on Friday. 

-91 km/h at Perth Airport at 8:11 pm on Friday. 

-89 km/h at Gooseberry Hill at 1:30 am on Saturday.

Residents in the foothills and Perth Hills called it the strongest winds they'd seen in decades, with some expressing their shock online, such as Wendy from Maida Vale, a follower of the Perth Weather Live Facebook page, who shared, "We've lived in Maida Vale for 34 years and never had winds this strong for so long!". 

So, what caused these strong winds? 

A high pressure ridge in the Bight, combined with a low pressure system that formed near the WA coast late in the week, created the perfect conditions for a powerful easterly wind event. As the low-pressure system shifted offshore, it created a steep pressure gradient that intensified the winds, particularly in regions like the Perth Hills and foothills. Here, the terrain of the Darling Scarp amplifies the gusts as the winds accelerate when descending, especially when a temperature inversion is present just above the escarpment. The inversion acts like a barrier, trapping and concentrating the wind energy, which causes the winds to gain speed as they rush downhill.  

This was not just a wind event, though.

A cut-off low in the upper atmosphere added instability to the system, triggering thunderstorms with localised heavy rainfall. Between 15-35 mm of rain fell in parts of the southwest, with Bunbury recording 3.6 mm in just 10 minutes and 6.2 mm in an hour early Saturday morning. 

Although windy conditions will persist across southwest WA, damaging winds are no longer expected, and the winds will steadily ease as the day unfolds.