A woman has died and thousands of people have called for help as destructive winds batter Australia’s south-east, with NSW residents warned the worst is to come.

The 63-year-old woman died when a tree struck a cabin at a holiday park in Moama, on the NSW-Victoria border on Sunday night.

Tens of thousands of Victorian homes were without power on Monday, following a night of pulsing winds and abnormally high tides.

Emergency services have warned against unnecessary travel after winds lashed the state, reaching 146km/h at Wilsons Promontory National Park, 133km/h at Mount Gellibrand and 131km/h at Falls Creek.

There were also gusts above 100km/h in suburbs across Melbourne.

The Victorian State Emergency Service received more than 2800 calls for help from 7pm on Sunday to 10am on Monday.

Outage update: we’ve restored power to over 100,000 customers after last night’s wild weather. Repairs will continue into the night to restore power to the remaining 6,712 customers without supply.

We expect to restore power to most customers later today, however due to the… pic.twitter.com/X9e72PXBWT

— Powercor Australia (@PowercorAust) September 2, 2024

As the wild weather front heads north, there were also strong winds on the NSW south coast on Monday and widespread fire danger warnings.

Senior meteorologist Christie Johnson said the strongest winds were yet to come in NSW.

Emergency services, including a water-bombing helicopter, were working on a bushfire that has closed the Princes Motorway north of Wollongong on Monday afternoon.

RFS Superintendent Martin Surry said wind gusts of up to 70km/h were being reported by crews on the fireground.

There are currently 37 bush and grass fires burning across NSW, five of which are yet to be contained. With Total Fire Bans in place for the Shoalhaven/Illawarra and Greater Sydney areas, strong winds are expected to pick up considerably over the coming hours. pic.twitter.com/O1lsZee7Mq

— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) September 1, 2024

Sydney Airport was reduced to using one runway throughout most of Monday, sparking chaos as dozens of flights were delayed or cancelled.

“Due to high winds, Airservices Australia are operating our east-west runway, which may cause some delays throughout the day,” an airport spokeswoman said on Monday.

“We encourage passengers to check with their airline regarding the status of their flight.”

AusNet said the weather had caused significant outages across Victoria, with about 112,000 people without power on Monday morning.

The impacts are across the network, including the towns of Moe and Warragul.

Significant delays were expected to continue for Victoria’s public transport system with debris affecting numerous train and tram lines. Traffic lights were also out at dozens of intersections across Melbourne.

At least three schools across Victoria were closed on Monday, while some private schools had asked students to work from home.

Premier Jacinta Allan said the state was not yet in the clear, with the wild weather to continue throughout Monday.

“Conditions, whilst they’re expected to gradually ease over the course of today, there is expected to be more localised events,” she said.

“As such there are two watch and act warnings and two watch and act advice notifications that are current for the state.”

Severe weather persists in the southeast today. Expect damaging winds in Newcastle, Sydney, Wollongong, Nowra, Bowral, Batemans Bay, Eden, Katoomba, Canberra, Goulburn, Cooma, Yass & Thredbo.

✔️Move vehicles under cover or away from trees.
✔️Secure loose outdoor items. pic.twitter.com/E8Oww5xcTw

— NSW SES (@NSWSES) September 1, 2024

NSW Police said a report would be prepared for the coroner after the death at Moama.

The woman’s body was found in the wreckage of the holiday cabin on the Murray River. A man, also aged 63, was taken to hospital with minor injuries.

Elsewhere, Emergency Management Commissioner Rick Nugent applauded Victorians for staying safe and following directions.

“It is really clear to us that the community did listen to messages over the past couple of days,” Nugent said.

“Many people weren’t on the roads at the high-risk period and we are really pleased for that.”

Tasmania under water

Meanwhile, residents in the Derwent Valley emergency area have been told to evacuate as the river continues to rise.

The Tasmania SES had 347 requests for assistance overnight on Sunday.

Peak wind gusts overnight reached 157km/h at King Island Airport and 130km/h at Launceston Airport.

The River Derwent below Meadowbank Dam was likely to exceed the major flood level of 7.3 metres early on Monday.

People in south-east Tasmanian towns on the Derwent – including Meadowbank, Glenora, Bushy Park, Gretna and Macquarie Plains – were urged to enact flood emergency plans and prepare their properties.

At New Norfolk, in Hobart’s outer north, the river had risen to the level of backyards by mid-Monday morning.

But BoM senior meteorologist Simon Louis said floods were forecast to remain at minor levels.

“Fortunately, the strongest gusts and the windiest conditions have now passed. But we’re not completely out of the woods,” he said.

“We’ve had significant rainfall accumulations over the last six-seven days across many parts of the state.

“The most significant flooding is occurring in the Derwent River catchment, but we’re currently forecasting record levels just below Meadowbank Dam, which is translating to a flood peak expected near the major flood level this evening about Macquarie Plains.”

Louis said most flood levels would peak later on Monday, with conditions improving on Tuesday before another major front on Wednesday.

Provider TasNetworks said about 10,000 customers were without power.

-with AAP