Sydney weather: Heavy rain, conditions to worsen for peak-hour commute - The Sydney Morning Herald

Chatswood office left without roof, windows after 'mini cyclone'

While Sydneysiders are battling the deluge, one business had a wetter day than most after losing its roof and windows in what its manager described as a "mini-cyclone".

Greg Transell arrived at work this morning, checking on the leak-prone basement before heading upstairs to the main offices.

As the commercial operations leader of Paragon Care in Chatswood climbed the stairs, he heard a massive bang as the wind ripped out the roofing and windows of Transell’s office.

"It just wanted to suck everything out," he told the Herald. "It's certainly an experience, I must say."

The SES have build a pond-like structure in Transell’s office to catch any rain that falls overnight.

While repairs on the offices are expected to take a few weeks, Transell said "stuff happens, you just have to deal with it and get on."

Premier urges 'common sense' for commute home

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has urged people to use their common sense while commuting home during tonight's extreme weather.

"We urge everybody to please take safety precautions, especially when going home this evening," the Premier said.

Her call was echoed by SES Commissioner Mark Smethurst, who noted that the strong winds in addition to the second dumping of rain will be an additional hazard.

"I urge everybody to take care as the winds pick up this afternoon, with that extra rain it’s going to be even more hazardous," he said.

It's happening again

The second phase of the rain event is upon us, according to the weather bureau's latest tweet.

The Herald's resident weather guru Peter Hannam has left the building – and Transport for NSW are recommending others do the same if possible. Tonight's commute home is looking slow, soggy and potentially dangerous, so take care.

The evening commute: how to get home

Sydneysiders are still battling wild weather as peak-travel time approaches, and it's only set to worsen in time for the rush home. The top piece of advice from Transport for NSW is to leave work now, if you can.

"Due to the severe weather affecting Sydney, we’re asking customers to allow plenty of extra time travelling home this afternoon, and if possible, leave work early to avoid the peak," said Marg Prendergast, coordinator general at Transport for NSW.

Timing aside, here’s how to prepare for the evening commute:

Trains

Lewisham Station has reopened after being flooded earlier today, but delays are still expected across the grid. Emergency buses are currently on standby for this afternoon in case of flash flooding.

Buses are replacing trains between Gordon and Hornsby on the T1 North Shore Line due to urgent overhead wiring repairs at Turramurra.

Ferries

Most ferries are running with small delays, but there are still some cancellations.
Buses are replacing Parramatta River ferries between Parramatta and Sydney Olympic Park as the weir has overflowed. Cockatoo Island Wharf is also closed so F3 and F8 ferries are not stopping there.

Buses

There are a number of major bus delays across Sydney at the moment. During the peak this morning, bus delays reached an hour in length. Strong winds causing fallen trees, branches and other debris are a major culprit for delays on Sydney's roads. Route 136, 208, 209 and 594 buses are being diverted.

Light rail

All light rail services between Central and Dulwich Hill were suspended earlier today due to fallen trees and flooding but as of 4pm have resumed.

Roads

Most major roads have reopened after this morning's flooding, but traffic is still heavy in many areas and more flooding may occur when the second storm front moves over the city. NSW Ambulance and Police have asked commuters to stay off the roads if possible.

Lane numbers have been greatly affected across the network, as well as a number of traffic lights blacked out due to power outages - here's the current picture:

Mascot and Pagewood: Traffic lights are blacked out or flashing yellow in areas.
Castle Cove: All southbound lanes of Eastern Valley Way remain closed between Boundary Street and Deepwater Road.
Rozelle: One of five eastbound lanes of The Crescent is closed approaching James Craig Road.
North Narrabeen: Southbound lanes of Wakehurst Parkway are affected just past Elanora Road.
Oxford Falls: Oxford Falls Road is closed between Wakehurst Parkway and Avoona Road.
Annangrove: Blue Gum Road is closed in both directions at Blue Gum Creek.
Maralya: McClymonts Road is closed in both directions.

Airport

Delays are still expected. Travellers are advised to check in with their airline to receive flight status updates.

Conditions to worsen as evening peak hits

The low pressure system circling Sydney is heading north and east. Credit:Bureau of Meteorology

While rainfall has eased since this morning's deluge, conditions are expected to worsen again just in time for the commute home as the intense low over Sydney's west and south tracks north and east. This Sydney rain radar image shows how the low pressure system is currently circling the Sydney metro areas. The majority of the rain occurring is on the southern flank of the low. Within the next couple of hours, a southerly surge is expected to push up the coast which will bring the heavy rain and thunderstorms back over the city, a Bureau of Meteorology spokeswoman said.

There's also an intense band of rainfall currently over the Blue Mountains, and according to Weatherzone's Tom Hough, that is heading towards the city.

Mr Hough said the renewed rainfall surge could catch the end of school pickup time, but it's more likely to hit in the middle of the evening commute – between 4pm and 8pm.

One dead, nine injured, 47 crashes in six hours

Police and paramedics are pleading with drivers to be careful on the roads during this afternoon’s peak period after attending 47 motor vehicle crashes in a six hour window this morning.

Nine people were transported to hospital between 6am and 12am, and one person died after a two car crash in Thornleigh.

NSW Ambulance Acting Superintendent Steve Vaughan said there were four times as many crashes during this morning's peak than yesterday's.

"In my 12 years here we’ve certainly seen some sustained poor weather, but nothing like this," he said. "We are really urging people to slow down and not drive if possible,” he said.

Mr Vaughan also said that NSW Ambulance have had concerns with emergency helicopters not being deployed due to conditions.

"We sent one out to the crash at Thornleigh but we aren’t always able to get them out," he said. "We are well above required staff so have many crew on standby, but we might not be able to get there as quickly as we’d like so we are really urging people to drive to the conditions."

Deluge creates 'beautiful new water feature' in yard

Billy Tucker of Hunters Hill was "running around like a wet rat" after water starting pouring down his stairs into the house around 6.15am, but he managed to see the lighter side when he posted this video of his brand new "water feature".

The spectacle lasted around 30 minutes before Mr Tucker managed to create a makeshift barrier out of a spare rug to stop the waterfall.

"I also managed to open up one of the drains and threw a few towels down at the doorstep so luckily the water didn’t get into the house too badly," he said. "I heard there is another wave of rain coming this afternoon, so have made sure that my barrier is good to go in case of more flooding."

Mr Tucker said that the household was experiencing even more rain-related chaos, with his wife trying to catch a flight out of Sydney Airport to Melbourne.

"She was on the earliest flight and was suppose to leave at 6am; she left at 9.15am," he said. "She was definitely stressed but the kids were absolutely loving the rain."

Sydney downpour a once in a 100-year event

The Bureau of Meteorology's NSW manager Ann Farrell said Sydney copped more than 100 millimetres of rain in less than two hours at the Observatory Hill station this morning - the wettest daily total the site has recorded since 1984.

"According to our estimates, for that intensity and that duration, that’s the sort of rainfall you’d expect to occur about once every 100 years for that particular site," she said.

Ms Farrell said the rain will continue into the evening, but is expected to clear by the morning.

The storms are expected to continue along the NSW coast this afternoon and into the evening.Credit:Fairfax Media

Concerns for flash flooding, falling trees as storms approach

The SES has warned flash flooding is likely and the potential for more trees to fall is "very high", but emergency services can't predict which areas will be worst hit.

NSW SES Assistant Commissioner Scott Hanckel said the flash flooding could occur "pretty much anywhere", and people needed to "stay vigilant" on the roads throughout the rest of Wednesday.

Mr Hanckel said people should limit travel to essential travel only, and reminded motorists to always avoid driving through floodwater.

Storm damage across Sydney.Credit:Ausgrid

Suburbs worst hit by rain

Reporter Josh Dye has taken a look at what suburbs have been sort hit by today's rain.

Mosman (136mm), the Sydney CBD (120mm) and Chatswood (106mm) all topped 100mm, while Abbotsford in the inner west received 97mm.

But the worst could be still to come, with the bureau issuing a severe thunderstorm warning for large hailstones and heavy rainfall in Sydney and most of coastal NSW.

Read his full report here.