Sydney storms: Thousands without power as rain lashes NSW
A WOMAN and two men, believed to be elderly, have died in the Hunter Valley township of Dungog.
THREE people have died in horrific weather conditions hitting NSW today, police have confirmed.
A woman and two men are believed to have been trapped in their homes as four houses were washed away in Dungog, 80km from Newcastle, in the Hunter Valley.
News came as footage emerged on YouTube of a house floating down raging floodwaters in the township. It is not known if the home belonged to any of the victims.
SES Deputy Commissioner Steven Pearce said cyclonic winds were still battering Newcastle, the Hunter and Central Coast.
“We’re in the process of issuing an emergency alert for all the residents of Newcastle to prepare for possible urban flash-flooding,” he said.
“We have rainfall recorded in excess of 300mm in some areas which has caused intense and catastrophic flash flooding and we’ve had homes completely washed away in Dungog.”
“We are currently preparing for a second low-pressure system forming off the coast which will impact the Central Coast later this afternoon and we’re also preparing for a line of destructive thunderstorm cells moving into the Newcastle urban area about mid-afternoon.
“We’re up to 4800 requests for assistance on the 132 500 line and
we’ve completed successfully over 55 separate flood rescues.
“More than 500 SES volunteers, 300 Fire & Rescue NSW firefighters and
200 RFS firefighters have already been deployed to areas affected by
the storms.
“But at this stage we still have more than 160,000 homes without power
including three hospitals working on emergency power,” Comm Pearce
said.
“We are calling for employers to let staff leave early to get
back to their homes before darkness because it’s going to be far too
dangerous on the road after dark.”
The drama in NSW’s second-largest city continued with reports that the Hunter River had broken its banks at the base of the Hexham Bridge near the northbound on-ramp travelling from Tarro,
Dungog is about 80km due north of Newcastle, with the township neighbouring Stroud — another region heavily affected by storms over the last 24 hours.
The deluge which began yesterday continued through the night and hit with a vengeance again at around 4.30am.
The SES says it holds ‘grave fears’ for multiple people trapped in the floodwaters affecting NSW’s Central Coast, North Coast and Hunter regions.
Storms have left thousands of homes and businesses without power, while widespread flooding is stretching emergency services.
Stroud and Dungog were two of the hardest areas hit, with flooding trapping dozens of people and preventing rescuers from moving in.
Comm Pearce said at least 20 people had already been rescued and there were still numerous people caught in dangerous situations on the state’s central and north coasts.
“We have multiple rescues going on at the moment where people ... are stranded in floodwaters, attempting to drive through floodwaters,” Mr Pearce said.
“Other people have attempted to drive through causeways and been washed over causeways.
“We have really grave fears for some of those people and we’re doing everything we can to address that.”
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Earlier, two people missing in floodwaters near Stroud were saved. One elderly woman was taken to hospital in a critical condition.
The strong winds stopped helicopters from being used in the rescue mission, which was conducted on land and water.
In Rankin Park, a suburb of Newcastle, a house was practically torn in two by a falling tree.
Brett Walker was asleep in bed with his wife in their newly renovated home when he woke about 3am to the sound of crashing.
“I rolled out of bed, put my wife under a doorway and went back to get my phone off the bedside table, and that’s when the roof tiles and everything else came down over my shoulders,” he said.
An enormous gum tree behind the house had collapsed, almost slicing the entire two-storey building in half.
Miraculously, neither Mr Walker nor his wife were injured.
“We were just really lucky. It’s demolished the house,” he said.
“There’s nothing left. We’ve just renovated the kitchen, the dining room and lounge room and got all new appliances and new lounges and bedroom suite.”
Mr Walker said he had been trying to contact SES since the tree collapsed but had so far been unable to get through due to the number of emergency calls.
Newcastle University closed its campus following the deluge, urging students and staff to remain at home.
The east-coast low is one of the worst the state has experienced in the past two or three years, he said.
There are flood watches on every major river system in the NSW Hunter and mid north coast area.
The SES is receiving 200 calls an hour — particularly from the Hunter and mid-north coast regions — but many others aren’t getting though due to power outages.
Winds the equivalent of a category two cyclone — up to 135km/h — have battered NSW’s Central Coast.
“We have hundreds and hundreds of volunteers out in the field and we are calling in more from other parts of the Sydney and now up onto the Hunter area,” Mr Pearce told media this morning.
“We’ve had 24 hours of relentless gale-force winds. I haven’t seen this wind damage for years.”
“It’s basically like a flood island (at Stroud).”
Reports are coming in from various locations of homes with their roofs torn off. The danger isn’t over and people should stay home, Mr Pearce said.
“The roads are far too dangerous. Flash flooding is everywhere throughout the Sydney metropolitan and surrounding areas,” he said. “We have multiple people being caught in the floodwaters. Please do not attempt to walk, ride or drive through floodwater.”
The Bureau of Meteorology said the weather was the result of an intense, slow-moving low pressure system near where the Hunter and Mid North Coast regions meet.
The system is expected to move gradually south throughout Tuesday.
Authorities are warning people to beware of downed power lines as well as avoiding storm debris that could be hiding live lines.
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Ausgrid says many homes and businesses will be without power throughout the day and into tomorrow as crews are forced to prioritise downed power lines.
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for damaging winds and surf along the coastal fringe from the Illawarra to the mid north coast.
Overnight wind gusts were recorded up to 135km/h at Norah Head, north of Gosford.
There is also the danger of flooding in the Manning, Karuah, Hunter, Wyong and Lower Hawkesbury valleys, as well as Lake Macquarie and the Paterson and Williams Rivers.
Some parts of the coast received more than 100mm of rain.
Gosford topped the 100mm mark while an astounding 258mm fell at Crawford, near Bulahdelah south of Forster.
The NSW SES expects to continue to be inundated with calls for help, after it received more than 3500 requests across the state since the weather deteriorated on Monday.
“We’re not expecting conditions to ease until Wednesday,” SES spokeswoman Stephanie Wills told AAP.
WEATHER WARNINGS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
DESTRUCTIVE WINDS averaging 90 to 100km/h with peak gusts up to 135km/h are forecast for coastal parts of the Hunter forecast district (including the Central Coast) today.
DAMAGING WINDS averaging 60 to 70km/h with gusts to about 100km/h are forecast to continue along the coastal fringe of the Metropolitan, Mid North Coast and Illawarra forecast districts today.
HEAVY RAINFALL is likely in the Hunter district, but also possible about the Metropolitan, Illawarra, and southern Mid North Coast today.
VERY HEAVY SURF which may lead to localised damage and coastal erosion is forecast for the Metropolitan, Hunter and Illawarra forecast districts and southern parts of the Mid North Coast forecast district overnight and Tuesday. Beach conditions in these areas are dangerous and people should stay well away from the surf and surf exposed areas.
Wind gusts overnight: 135km/h at Norah Head, 120km/h at Nobbys Head, 90 to 100km/h at Williamtown, North Head, and Sydney Airport.
Rainfall since 9am Monday: 258mm at Crawford (near Bulahdelah), 161mm at Wallsend, 161mm at Wahroonga (Sydney).
The State Emergency Service advises that people should:
•Move vehicles under cover or away from trees.
•Secure or put away loose items around your house, yard and balcony.
•Keep clear of fallen power lines.
•Don’t drive, ride or walk through flood water.
•Keep clear of creeks and storm drains.
If you are trapped by flash flooding, seek refuge in the highest available place and ring 000 if you need rescue.
For emergency help in floods and storms, ring your local SES Unit on 132 500.
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