Fires and flooding rains as Australia's summer weather goes wild

Steady rain and low clouds blanketed Sydney today, putting a dampener on the weekend - but the weather was far wilder across the rest of Australia.

Just north of Perth, firefighters remained on alert for a second day of fires, with a predicted wind change expected to heighten danger on the fire's northern front.

South Australia has been copping it from all sides - punished by bushfires, and now mopping up after floods.

In the Northern Territory's Red Centre, the normally-dry Todd River is flowing, and Uluru is even spouting waterfalls.

In Queensland's far north, an atmospheric depression north-east of Cairns has locals wondering if cyclone season is about to drop in.