Sydney weather: BOM issues evacuation orders as another rain bomb strikes

Tens of thousands of Sydneysiders have been ordered to evacuate their homes now with warnings of heavy rain, damaging floods and even landslides. 

Large swathes of Sydney‘s south and southeast have been told to find safer ground as the Georges River threatens to burst it banks on Tuesday morning.  

The NSW SES has issued evacuation orders for a number of suburbs including Chipping Norton, Georges Hall, and parts of Holsworthy, Lansvale and Milperra. 

Other suburbs affected told to evacuate immediately include parts of Moorebank, parts of Warwick Farm, Picnic Point, Pleasure Point and Sandy Point. 

‘If you remain in the area you may be trapped without power, water and other essential services and it may be too dangerous to rescue you,’ the order states.  

The SES has predicted even more torrential rain on Tuesday will create dangerous conditions in the Mid North Coast, Sydney, Hunter, South Coast and Illawarra. 

‘Heavy rain has caused flash flooding and river height rises overnight across these locations and further heavy rainfall, flash flooding and river rises are possible today,’ it said about 5am on Tuesday. 

‘Strong winds are expected which could cause trees and powerlines to fall. Landslides are also possible, which could block roads.’ 

It comes as catastrophic wet weather bears down on coastal areas of NSW, with forecasters predicting heavy, ‘intense’ rainfall and damaging winds on the way.

Sydney commuters have been told to avoid all non-essential travel in the face of wet and wild conditions and ditch the city’s rail network entirely. 

Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Dean Narramore said the state faced a tough 24 to 48 hours ahead during a press conference on Tuesday. 

The senior  

Transport for NSW told those heading to work or school to prepare for the worst, leave plenty of time for delays. 

Ferry services were disrupted by heavy swells with delays on bus services due to extensive road closures and flood damage. 

‘Avoid any non-essential travel and if you do need to use the network please plan ahead and leave plenty of extra travel time,’ it tweeted at 6am on Tuesday. 

‘Impacts will continue through the rest of this week as we undertake detailed inspections to ensure the rail network remains safe for trains and customers.’

At least 20 major roads were closed on Monday night as Sydney and beyond was hit with a heavy deluge. 

The Bureau of Meteorology issued a major warning to all motorists. 

‘Slippery and flooded roads and reduced visibility in heavy rain will make driving conditions dangerous during Tuesday in all suburbs,’ it wrote. 

‘Motorists are advised to take extreme care.’ 

In a bid to ease congestion around the city, Transport for NSW have opened the T2 and T3 transit lanes for general use until midnight on Friday.

The train line in the Blue Mountains was closed on Monday after the incessant deluge caused a damaging landslide. 

In the 24 hours from 2pm on Monday the SES had performed 100 flood rescues in the 24 hours to 6:30am on Monday and responded to 2400 calls for help.  

State Emergency Service Assistant Commissioner Sean Kearns said it had been an ‘extremely busy night’ for emergency services. 

‘We would just like to warn the community to listen to the warnings from the bureau and to avoid unnecessary travel,’ Commissioner Kearns told Channel Nine’s Today Show on Tuesday. 

BoM has warned that a new low will bring more storms on Tuesday, with rainfall reaching up to 200mm, prompting concerns of flash flooding in multiple areas along the coast and in greater Sydney. 

As of Tuesday, 25 flood warnings are in place including major alerts along the Georges River, Hawkesbury Nepean Valley, Colo River, St Georges Basin, Hunter River, Wollombi Brook and Macleay River. 

The Nepean River at Menangle Bridge was expected to surpass 16 metres at about 3am on Tuesday, yards above the major level of 12.2 metres. 

The Nepean was expected to exceed moderate level at Camden Weir and Wallacia Weir overnight on Monday. 

The Hawkesbury River and North Richmond were experiencing major flooding on Monday night, with similar scenes expected at Penrith, Windsor and downstream.  

The Colo River at Putty Road has also exceeded its major flood level with officials expecting the major river to continue to rise on Tuesday. 

Residents in Picton’s CBD, parts of Emu Plains and Mulgoa have been told to prepare to evacuate with those in the Hawkesbury-Nepean region urged not to return home if they have been evacuated.  

Terrey Hills, Sydney and Liverpool could be hit with 50 to 80mm of rain on Tuesday, while Campbelltown could receive 60 to 90mm and Richmond 70 to 120mm. 

The rainfall may result in ‘rapid river level rises and very deep and dangerous flooding’, the weather bureau warned.

The SES has warned anyone who lives near a ‘river, creek or stream’ in the Mid North Coast, Hunter, Sydney, Illawarra or South Coast to be ‘ready to take action.’

State Emergency Commissioner Carlene York flagged authorities would be keeping a close eye on the swollen Hawkesbury River in the coming days. 

Ms York said flooding on some parts of the river could be worse than last weekend and similar to that experienced during the flood crisis last March. 

She urged residents to take evacuation orders seriously by organising essentials, important documentation and allowing time to leave their premises safely.   

Thousands of residents have already been forced to evacuate from the dangerous weather, with residents in Camden in Sydney’s south-west told to get out by 11.59pm or risk being cut off. 

Residents in East Hills, southwest of the CBD, were told to evacuate by 2:30am while low-lying properties in Croki, near Taree, forced to leave at 9:15pm on Monday. 

Local flooding submerged streets across Sydney’s inner-west including Potts Point, Surry Hills, Newtown and Petersham. There were roads in Camden, Bankstown and Liverpool resembling rivers.

There was also shocking footage showing multiple cars struggling to make it flooded streets in Milperra. 

A taxi was seen submerged in the deluge with its hazard lights on as other vehicles appeared stuck in the brown water.

About 83mm of rain fell at Marrickville in the 2 hours to 10.45pm on Monday, 81mm hit Kentlyn in the 2 hours to 10pm and 86mm was recorded at Lucas Heights in the 2 hours to 9.30pm. 

In Hurstville, shocking footage showed the rooftop of an Aldi store collapsing due to the intense rain. 

On Monday evening, the SES issued evacuations orders for parts of Camden in Sydney’s south-west by 9pm.  

A renewed alert warned residents within parts of Camden that they have until 11.59pm on Monday or risk getting cut off once flood waters reach 10.3 metres at Camden Weir. 

Residents in the south coast towns of Sussex Inlet and St Georges Basin were also told to prepare to evacuate. 

The SES have warned that roads in Sussex Inlet may become inaccessible due to the hazardous weather. 

In greater Sydney, the wet weather has created landslides and shifting earth.

Residents in Sydney and the Blue Mountains have been warned over the risk of deadly landslides, many of which have already caused mud, trees and vegetation to fall onto roads. 

A number of the landslides were reported at Emu Heights and Katoomba in the Blue Mountains. 

Footage released by Fire and Rescue shows a roadway cut off due to a landslide.  

In Northern NSW, flooding has continued to devastate suburbs near the coastline. 

A recent viral video shared to Reddit sees raging floodwaters near the town of Murwillumbah carve up the landscape, carrying gum trees, boulders and other debris.

The floods have reportedly destroyed homes and local infrastructure in the area. 

Harsh conditions are predicted to ease on Wednesday – when the sun may finally return.

Intense flooding continued to inundate Coraki, 30km south of Lismore, on Monday. 

Meanwhile, the NSW Premier has apologised to flood-devastated communities.

Dominic Perrottet said sorry to thousands of people in the Northern Rivers district, whose homes and businesses were destroyed when towns like Lismore and Ballina were inundated by floodwaters last week. 

Many had to be rescued by fellow citizens and have since struggled to access basics such as food, water, power, fuel, phones, ATMs, the internet and medical supplies.

‘I’m very sorry … but we’re doing everything that we can,’ Mr Perrottet told the Nine Network from Lismore.

‘Some of those areas will look back at this and say it could have been done better but … we’re doing absolutely everything we can to provide care and support for those who need it to get those essential supplies in,’ he said.    

The emergency response would be reviewed, he added.

Floods have claimed six lives in NSW, including four in Lismore.

The Australian Defence Force is helping with the mammoth clean-up with 512 personnel on the ground in NSW.

Some 5000 personnel will be put on task or made available in NSW and Queensland over the course of this week, as 2010 are on the ground in both states, the ADF said.

‘We’re getting supplies in. We’re getting food in,’ Mr Perrottet said.

Around 2,000 of the 3,500 homes assessed so far in the Northern Rivers are no longer habitable, increasing the need for short-term and medium-to-long-term accommodation.

Telstra on Monday said it had restored about 80 per cent of mobile coverage for communities in northern NSW and 75 per cent of landline connections.

But some areas remained inaccessible due to continued flooding, road damage or a lack of electricity that is hampering the work of around 1,000 technicians.

The northern NSW communities of Kingscliff, Main Arm, Mullumbimby, Ocean Shores, Tucabia, Uki and Wooli are among those still having issues with communications.

The State Emergency Service had another 550 calls for help overnight and performed nine flood rescues.

SES Deputy Commissioner Daniel Austin says volunteers are waiting with ‘bated breath’ to see what Monday brings.

‘We’re certainly on high alert from the Mid-North Coast down into the Shoalhaven,’ he told the Nine Network.

‘We are watching exceptionally closely a number of catchments … around the Hawkesbury and Central Coast and places.

‘The water hasn’t retreated yet. We’re now going to see more flooding on top of what we’ve already seen.’

Renewed flooding is likely in the Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley and major flooding continues in the Upper Nepean, Nepean, Hawkesbury and Colo Rivers, the SES said on Monday.

Rainfall on Tuesday could push the Nepean River at Penrith over six metres causing minor floods. 

Major flooding is also taking place at North Richmond and is likely to happen at Putty Road as the Colo River is expected to exceed 10.7 metres on Monday night and continue to swell to up to 11.5 metres on Tuesday.

Rain is causing significant travel delays with cancellations expected on most Sydney Trains, NSW TrainLink Intercity and Regional train services and drivers are being urged to stay off the roads unless it’s absolutely necessary.