THE Maranoa region's heavy rainfall this week might not have broken any records, but it still came as a relief.

Roma already hit halfway to its January average five days into the month, with the town's rain gauges having caught 60mm already, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

However, it was still less than the surprise hit of 53mm back in June last year in just one day.

BOM Brisbane duty forecaster Diana Eadie said the huge rain was caused by a tropical low that was out of the ordinary for an El Nino period.

"It originated from a low pressure system south of the gulf of Carpentaria and worked its way up north," she said.

"That tropical low pressure system did appear at one stage that it could have become a tropical cyclone, so that was certainly out of the ordinary.

"We're definitely in an El Nino, which tends to have dryer conditions."

Elsewhere, Mitchell had 45mm, while Surat has already had 50mm this year.

Other parts of south-west Queensland enjoyed big falls, with Charleville experiencing its wettest January day since 2008 and its wettest day of any month since 2010.

The town of Boothulla, north of Quilpie, recorded 126mm in a 24-hour period since the year began.

DID you get any big falls? Let us know by emailing editorial@ westernstarnews.com.