[ad_1]
New South Wales has been pummelled by a once-in-a-century storm that ripped roofs from homes, caused a luxury house to teeter on the edge of a cliff and left locals swimming laps in Sydney’s most iconic park.
Startling pictures taken across the state illustrate just how much damage has been done in the last three days, and meteorologists are warning the deluge has set in for at least the next five days.
A luxury home in Newcastle, north of Sydney, is teetering on the edge of a cliff after a landslide caused the ground beneath it to collapse.
A landslip took out some of the house’s foundations, forcing the road to be closed on Shortland esplanade in Newcastle on Sunday.
The lower level deck looks in a precarious position as it juts out above ground level with rubble, mud and dirt piled beneath it.
Meanwhile south of Sydney in the Sutherland Shire, an excavator on a washed out job site was submerged in floodwaters on Sunday morning
A luxury home in Newcastle, north of Sydney, is teetering on the edge of a cliff after a landslide caused the ground beneath it to collapse
Sydneysiders captured footage of themselves swimming in Centennial Park after three days of torrential rain turned the greenspace into a lake
Meanwhile south of Sydney in the Sutherland Shire, an excavator on a washed out job site was submerged in floodwaters on Sunday morning.
The machinery fell into the pool of water after the muddy ground gave way and caused it to keel over.
Sydneysiders captured footage of themselves swimming in Centennial Park after three days of torrential rain turned the greenspace into a lake.
A woman was seen doing breaststroke through the waist-high water, before diving under and continuing to frolic.
The Sydney CBD was drenched by 110mm of rain in the 24 hours to 9am on Sunday, while 120mm hit Hornsby and 168mm reached Katoomba.
Further north in Port Macquarie, a cow was photographed struggling to keep its head above water.
A local woman used a kayak to row over to the cow that had become trapped as floodwaters continued to rise in the region.
She captured a video of herself lifting the cow’s head above water so it could breathe as it wailed in distress.
Elsewhere in Port Macquarie, a lone man could be seen wading through water as he made his way down Short Street on Saturday afternoon.
The water reached the local’s waist as flash flooding destroyed shops and homes in the region.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Sunday labelled a ‘one-in-100-year event’ on the mid-north coast.
Patrons at a pub in Telegraph Point, in northern NSW, were seen enjoying a beer while standing in thigh-high water on Saturday night.
The locals appeared unfazed as furniture around them began to float and move around in scenes reminiscent of the movie Titanic. The owner’s dog sat perched on a table above the water.
Patrons at a pub in Telegraph Point, in northern NSW, appeared unfazed while enjoying a beer while standing in thigh-high water on Saturday night
The woman in a kayak captured a video of herself lifting the cow’s head so it could breathe as floodwaters continued to rise in Port Macquarie
The Bureau of Meteorology’s Agata Imielska said the severity of rain hitting Greater Sydney would ease from Sunday night, but the mid north coast would continue to be drenched and inland NSW would be deluged from Monday.
Ms Imielska said the NSW northwest slopes and plains would receive four times more rain in two days than the entire March monthly average.
The NSW south coast would also experience heavy rain from Tuesday, with little respite for any region across the state until Wednesday.
The heavy rain kept falling overnight and into Sunday morning as rivers across NSW and near Sydney overflowed or threatened to flood.
Residents in Pitt Town Bottoms, Pitt Town North, Cornwallis, North Richmond, Grono’s Point, Freemans Reach and Agnes Banks west of Sydney were told to evacuate in the early hours as the Hawkesbury River flooded.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s Justin Robinson said forecasters believed the Hawkesbury Nepean Valley would experience its worst flooding since 1961, with the spilling of a full Warragamba Dam prompting major concern.
Warragamba was hit by more than 150mm of rain in the 24 hours to 9am on Sunday, and more than 250mm over the past four days.
People in low-lying areas in the Hawkesbury Nepean Valley have been told to protect homes by sandbagging doorways and clearing drains.
The Nepean River at Penrith could rise as high as 10 metres by 9pm, while the river at Richmond and Windsor would not peak until Monday.
Elsewhere in Port Macquarie, a lone man could be seen wading through water as he made his way down Short Street on Saturday afternoon
Warragamba Dam in Sydney’s west – the city’s main water supply – has spilled over for the first time in fourteen years
A car is left stuck in raging floodwater at the Audley Weir in the Royal National Park south of Sydney
This entire street near the Paterson river in Hinton, in the NSW Hunter region, is underwater
SES Deputy Commissioner Daniel Austin told the ABC the service was dealing with downed trees, power outages, clearing of debris and damage to houses.
The SES has responded to almost 7000 calls for help since Thursday.
‘We’re planning well beyond Easter for our own operations,’ Mr Austin said.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Sunday said that the Hawkesbury Nepean Valley flood could prompt an additional 4000 evacuations by the day’s end.
[ad_2]
Source link