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Sydney hit by double whammy, as NSW storms turn deadly

Storm sweeps Sydney

Source: Facebook/Benjamin Williams

A man has died and 150,000 customers are without power after a long line of storms smashed NSW’s east coast late on Wednesday.

The severe thunderstorms swept in from the west, bringing wild winds, heavy rain, large hailstones and more than 321,000 lightning strikes.

The huge band of mayhem stretched from Wollongong through Sydney to Newcastle and surrounding areas, with Wagga Wagga one of the worst-hit areas.

There were reports of trees and powerlines down and damaged roofs, and the SES responded to scores of requests for help.

A male driver in his 80s died after a tree fell on his vehicle on Lachlan Valley Way, Cowra, in the state’s central west about 4pm. He is yet to be formally identified.

Elsewhere, another four people were injured in Wagga Wagga when high winds ripped off the roofs of their demountable huts.

In the south, a roof was torn off in Culcairn, said NSW SES.

It has had more than 2250 calls and responded to more than 1800 incidents in 24 hours, predominantly for fallen trees and property damage.

Sydney was hit by a double whammy of chaos as storms hit railway services already affected by a crippling strike.

About 1000 services were expected to be cancelled in the strike on Wednesday, and the storms caused further delays.

There appears to be no end in sight after three days of industrial action that could progressively cripple the network.

storms

A band of storms sweeps towards the NSW coast on Wednesday afternoon. Photo: BOM

Endeavour Energy emergency crews responded to widespread damage caused by violent electrical storms.

Newcastle is bearing the brunt of the blackouts, with more than 60,000 customers affected, followed by 31,000 in Sydney and 4000 on the Central Coast.

A fallen tree is causing grief at Royal North Shore Hospital, while at Carlingford, in the city’s north-west, 14 people required alternative accommodation after their homes lost roofs in the storm.

The wild weather is expected to continue on Thursday, with heavy rain, flash flooding, hail and strong winds possible across the state. Shortly after 8am on Thursday, Sydney had had about 40 millimetres of rain since the wild weather hit.

Severe thunderstorms will combine with a low-pressure weather system, expected to bring up to 80 millimetres of rain by Saturday, the Bureau of Meteorology has warned.

Friday will bring the worst of the rain, with up to 100 millimetres predicted in some areas.

A minor flood watch has been issued for several river catchments — Orara, Coffs Coast, Bellinger and Kalang River Catchments, Manning and Gloucester, Myall River, Karuah River, Wollombi Brook and Lower Hunter, and Paterson and Williams River.

Holiday makers near rivers and creeks have been advised to move to higher ground.

Strong winds and flash flooding may make travel difficult in the coming days.

By 9pm Wednesday, the strongest wind gusts observed were at
Trangie with 120km/h and Kurnell, 117km/h.

-with AAP

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