Rain bomb erupts over the east coast, posing a threat to life in Brisbane and Sydney

A major rainstorm is brewing off Australia’s east coast, with Queensland expected to bear the brunt of the late-autumn downpour after a woman drowned in flooding.

In some regions, life-threatening flash flooding and serious transportation disruptions are possible, according to a severe weather update from the Bureau of Meteorology.

‘We’ve witnessed an eruption of cloud over Queensland over the last 24 hours,’ meteorologist Jackson Browne said. ‘Two-thirds of the state is currently under flood watch.’

On Wednesday morning, a woman was discovered dead in her vehicle at Mount Ossa, north of Mackay, after it was inundated in floodwaters.

Two other people were also taken to hospital in a stable condition, police confirmed.

The state’s unseasonable drenching is also forecast to also spread further south, reaching northern NSW by Wednesday and then Sydney and even Melbourne by Thursday.