Sydney and large parts of the state have been hit by wild weather, with heavy rain causing chaos. Around 80 millimetres fell in just an hour, prompting warnings for residents to stay indoors. The SES has urged caution after conducting dozens of flood rescues.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00An iconic skyline lost in the clouds and roads transformed into waterfalls.
00:10It pissed down. It was crazy.
00:12It was like a classic sort of Sydney storm that comes through.
00:16And it did come through, packing 80 millimetres of rain in just one hour.
00:21And that for us produced around 21 to 23 flood rescues. Out of that we've also got around
00:26about 300 jobs across Sydney which are all storm related.
00:29Across New South Wales, the SES received more than 550 calls for help.
00:35Several vehicles were stuck in floodwaters, but no one was injured.
00:39Drivers don't hear our message, which is do not drive through flooded waters.
00:44And our modern day cars are all electrified in some way.
00:47Once they hit that flooded water, they fry basically and they fall stuck in the water.
00:52During the peak of the storms, a Watch and Act warning was issued for much of Greater
00:55Sydney, telling people to stay indoors.
00:58Drainage systems could be maintained a little better than what they currently are and I
01:03think that's part of the reason that the flooding's as bad as what it is when it does rain heavily
01:09in Sydney.
01:10We do have the flash flooding, which is a result of drains not being cleared by local
01:13councils and we need to ask them to assist us by clearing out their gutters, which will
01:19stop some of these flood rescues occurring.
01:21The state's south was hit at around 6am, bringing hail and strong winds.
01:26It forced the closure of several schools in the Riverina.
01:29Osgoode and Deva reported more than 12,000 customers lost power in the Sydney area.
01:35Most of them were in the city's west.
01:37By mid-afternoon, the worst of the weather had cleared, but forecasters are warning more
01:42thunderstorms are on their way.