Environment

Sydney weather: Marrickville unit block threatening to collapse following storms

Wild flash flooding across Sydney

As a severe thunderstorm causes havoc on roads and public transport.

That wraps up our coverage of today's storms in Sydney - thanks for sticking with us.

The mop-up continues after a severe thunderstorm hit just after 10am.

It flooded roads, partially collapsed a house, threatened to collapse an apartment block, and dumped more rain on Sydney in an hour than we had in January.

We can expect more rain tomorrow, before a sweltering weekend.

Read the full story here.

The storm approaches Sydney on Tuesday morning, as seen from Kurnell.
The storm approaches Sydney on Tuesday morning, as seen from Kurnell. Photo: Nick Moir

Storms and rain to be only relief for a while

More rain will settle over Sydney late tonight and early tomorrow morning, the Bureau of Meteorology says.

And it will be the only relief for a while, with temperatures in the high-30s returning just in time for the weekend.

Rob Taggart, Duty Forecaster at the Bureau, said a trough on the Illawarra Coast would move to Sydney on Tuesday night and bring a return of rain.

"There is a chance of a storm late tonight and in the early hours of tomorrow morning," Mr Taggart said on Tuesday afternoon.

"There's not a high chance, but if we do see one it's most likely going to be along the coastal fringe, and if we do see one we're going to see some heavy rainfall again like we saw today." 

The heaviest rain fell in Marrickville, which got 38mm in half an hour from 10am. At Prospect, further west, 20mm of rain fell in 30 minutes from a second storm, behind the main one which hit the airport and the inner west.

Early morning is expected to be when the worst of Wednesday's rain will hit as well, particularly for the city's east.

From then, there will be a clearing trend throughout the day, a slight chance of a shower on Thursday, and a return to "hot conditions" on Friday.

The weekend will be "very hot over most of the city".

"It looks like, Saturday, there's almost no relief anywhere, not even with sea breezes," Mr Taggart said. "It's four days away yet, but without a doubt it's going to be a hot day."

Cars drive in rain in North Sydney on Tuesday.
Cars drive in rain in North Sydney on Tuesday. Photo: Wolter Peeters

Building flooded with 100,000 litres of water

Chalmers Street in Redfern was hit hard by the storm, with fire crews still on scene to help with the clean-up.

Four crews are at the Salvation Army building, which has been flooded by 100,000 litres of water.

A Salvation Army spokesman said the building's flood gates were put up on Tuesday morning, but some water still managed to get in.

"We're working with emergency services out the front," the spokesman said. "It hasn't caused any major damage."

Emergency services were called out to Chalmers Street just before 2pm, with reports a basement was flooding and the water was increasing.

A Fire and Rescue NSW spokeswoman said two water turbines were being used to pump the water out. Sixteen firefighters remained on the scene just before 5pm.

The agency had a very busy three hours from 10am as the storm hit.

Firefighters were called out to 200 storm-related incidents, many of them in inner Sydney.

What to expect for the afternoon peak

Most of the flooding that was affecting roads this morning has cleared, which should make for a fairly straightforward evening commute.

The Transport Management Centre says the only major road still flooded is Wansey Road at Randwick.

It remains closed in both directions between Alison Road and Arthur Street, as it has for several hours.

​Buses are also still replacing ferries between Parramatta and Rydalmere, because of the overflowing Parramatta Weir.

"There may be delays on smaller roads, but on major roads there is no [other] flooding causing delays," a Transport Management Centre spokeswoman said.

Buses in the inner west, north west and east have been delayed by up to 20 minutes by heavy traffic.

Sydney Trains says there are no delays to their services, after Lewisham Station partially flooded a few hours ago - but they have urged everyone to take care.

A car drives through flash flooding at Petersham on Tuesday morning.
A car drives through flash flooding at Petersham on Tuesday morning. Photo: Steven Siewert

Photos of the storm

Sydney Morning Herald photographers have braved the storms today to bring us these photos.

WET WEATHER. Heavy rain lashes the city as a line of storms track east over Sydney CBD. 7th February 2017, Photo: Wolter Peeters, The Sydney Morning Herald.

Heavy rain and grey skies on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Photo: Wolter Peeters

This home in Champion Street, Tennyson, collapsed from the heavy rain.

This home in Champion Street, Tennyson, collapsed from the heavy rain. Photo: Nic Walker

Commuter splashed by flash flooding at Petersham.

Commuter splashed by flash flooding at Petersham. Photo: Steven Siewert

The storm, as seen from Kurnell looking north on Tuesday morning.

The storm, as seen from Kurnell looking north on Tuesday morning. Photo: Nick Moir

People exercise at Observatory Hill, which had more rain in one day than it had in January.

People exercise at Observatory Hill, which had more rain in one day than it had in January. Photo: Janie Barrett

Flash flooding near Petersham.

Flash flooding near Petersham. Photo: Steven Siewert

Emergency services attend an unstable unit block on Ewart Street in Marrickville.

Emergency services attend an unstable unit block on Ewart Street in Marrickville. Photo: Wolter Peeters

The intense storm rolls in: Looking north from Kurnell on Tuesday morning.

The intense storm rolls in: Looking north from Kurnell on Tuesday morning. Photo: Nick Moir

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Here's the waterway that's caused all the trouble on Ewart Street in Marrickville.

Geoff, a resident of the complex, noticed part of the pond wall collapsed just three metres from units, which prompted the emergency response. 

Fire and Rescue NSW said 17 people were evacuated from the unit block, which is currently sound.

Engineers are inspecting the building to see if there is any damage. It is likely the building will be declared safe and residents will be able to return tonight.

However, Geoff said the real test will come when there is more rain.

"When it rains heavily, the water comes from Ewart Street straight down the driveway and straight into the pond," he said.

"But the issue is it's not rock, it's just soil, so heavy rain will continue to erode it away. Hopefully they can stabilise the face of the pond. At the moment there's only one big tree stabilising it so if we have another rain like today it could be bad."

Emergency services inspect the pond behind a unit block in Ewart Street, Marrickville.
Emergency services inspect the pond behind a unit block in Ewart Street, Marrickville. Photo: Wolter Peeters

Pictures are starting to filter through of the house that collapsed with heavy rain at Tennyson Point.

The roof of the home on Champion Street buckled, sending tiles and debris into the front yard, and brought down power lines connected to the house.

Though there was a car parked in the driveway, when firefighters went inside they found the house was empty.

SES spokeswoman Becky Gollings said they've had about 135 calls outs across Sydney, mostly for leaking roofs and trees down.

Volunteers performed 13 flood rescues, mostly in the inner west around Marrickville, Alexandria and Zetland. 

 

The roof of a house in Champion Street, Tennyson Point, collapsed with heavy rain.
The roof of a house in Champion Street, Tennyson Point, collapsed with heavy rain. Photo: Nic Walker

More storms to strike tonight

After this morning's deluge, we can expect more storms from this afternoon - with the possibility of the same amount of rain again.

Sam Terry, a meteorologist at Fairfax Media's Weatherzone, said the storm system from this morning has moved off the coast, but from this evening we will see winds turning back onshore.

"There will be a deep layer of moisture on the atmosphere, more rain overnight, thunderstorms, and the potential for flash flooding," Mr Terry said.

Storms on Tuesday morning saw 10 to 30mm of rain fall across the Sydney basin, with a "bullseye" of 40 to 50mm in the inner city and inner west.

"We could see that much rain again," Mr Terry said. "There's quite a lot of moisture there ... there's all the ingredients to see that happen again."

The worst will be over from around 9am on Wednesday morning, with showers continuing to ease until they disappear on Thursday.

"Basically, we'll see another 24 hours of this," Mr Terry said on Tuesday afternoon.

As workers prepare for their evening commute, the Transport Management Centre has warned of road closures and delays.

Buses are replacing F3 Parramatta River ferries between Parramatta and Rydalmere as Parramatta Weir is overflowing.

In Randwick, Wansey Road is still closed in both directions between Alison Road and Arthur Street.

More storms will strike from the late afternoon.
More storms will strike from the late afternoon. Photo: Steven Siewert

Wild storms lash Sydney

If you're just joining us, here's what's happening in Sydney at the moment:

  • Thunderstorms began to roll in with little warning from around 10am
  • The storms and rain were focused on inner Sydney and also deluged the east, west and inner west
  • In three hours, more rain fell at Sydney's Observatory Hill than we saw in January
  • A large number of flights were delayed, with some cancelled, as lightning and rain struck near the airport
  • Flash flooding covered the Anzac Bridge, and roads in suburbs including Alexandria, Zetland, Paddingon, Double Bay, Leichhardt and Moore Park
  • At least one home has partially collapsed, at Tennyson Point
  • There have been power outages for some homes
  • Emergency services are on the scene at a unit block in Marrickville, which they fear could collapse into a waterway
  • Police and the SES say everyone should take care on the road and avoid floodwater
Evacuated residents check their phones as emergency services inspect an unstable unit block on Ewart Street in Marrickville.
Evacuated residents check their phones as emergency services inspect an unstable unit block on Ewart Street in Marrickville. Photo: Wolter Peeters
Emergency services assess a nature pond that has partially collapsed next to a unit complex in Ewart St, Marrickville.
Emergency services assess a nature pond that has partially collapsed next to a unit complex in Ewart St, Marrickville. Photo: Nick Ralston

A resident in Ewart Street has explained the situation in Marrickville.

He said the unit complex, which comprises four large blocks of units, has a 50-metre long nature pond out the back that has partially collapsed.

The pond bed is only soil (no rock) and part of the pond wall has collapsed. The pond is about three metres from the unit complex's walls.

 "When I came home I went down to check it out because all the garbage bins usually get swept down to the pond fence when it rains," the resident, Geoff, said.

"I could see where the trees had fallen into the pond and part of the pond face had collapsed. I called the council and said: 'you better get an engineer down here now'."

Some residents have been evacuated while a structural engineer determines the best course of action.

"I've never seen anything like the rain today," Geoff said. "I've been driving cabs for 30 years and I've never had to stop driving because of dangerous rain. Today the visibility was zero."

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The unit block in Ewart St, Marrickville has a water hole next to the building that has filled up with water, leading to concerns the structure may collapse, SES spokeswoman Becky Gollings said.

SES and other emergency services are on site assessing the situation.

"There are about 100 people in the building, we're not sure if they're evacuating or not. Crews are checking out the situation at the moment," she said.

 

Building threatening to collapse in Marrickville

State Emergency Service crews are on their way to Marrickville, where a staggering 48mm of rain fell within an hour.

Westbound lanes re-open on the Anzac Bridge

All lanes of the Anzac Bridge are now open after flooding.

Traffic is heavy and queued back across the Western Distributor to Darling Harbour.

Other streets that are closed include:

  • Alexandria: O'Riordan Street in both directions between Collins Street and Bourke Road (motorists heading to the airport should use Southern Cross Drive or the Princes Highway)
  • Randwick: Wansey Road in both directions between Alison Road and Arthur Street

Police issue warning ahead of more rain

With more wet weather expected over the next 24 hours, NSW Police have urged drivers and pedestrians to have their wits about them.

Leave your headphones in your bag if you're walking or think about carrying a colourful umbrella, said Traffic and Highway Patrol Commander Michael Corboy.

"Drivers, riders, cyclists and pedestrians should be more aware of the risks in wet weather," he said.

"It is all about being visible to other road users and that might include driving with your headlights on, wearing bright clothing or carrying a colourful umbrella.

"For drivers, leave a greater braking distance from the vehicle in front in case of the need to stop quickly."

"Cyclists similarly should ride to the road conditions, being aware of large puddles and spray from passing vehicles. Most importantly they should visible to other road users, and not in their blind spots."

Pedestrians duck for cover in the city on Tuesday.
Pedestrians duck for cover in the city on Tuesday. Photo: Ben Rushton

Parts of Sydney have had their heaviest rainfall in six months fall in one hour.

Weatherzone says hourly rain rates during the slow-moving severe storms this morning included:

  • Marrickville: 48mm
  • Canterbury: 46mm
  • Sydney Observatory Hill:40mm
  • Sydney Airport: 26mm
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House collapses at Tennyson Point

Fire and Rescue NSW says the front of a house has collapsed on Champion Road in Tennyson Point, near Gladesville.

No one was inside the house at the time.

Roads Minister: 'Delay trip if possible'

NSW Roads Minister Melinda Pavey has urged motorists to consider their need to drive after thunderstorms swept through Sydney.

The roads most affected by the storm include the Anzac Bridge, where motorists are experiencing significant delays due to flooding, Parramatta Road near Flood Street in Leichhardt, and James Ruse Drive near Pennant Hills Road.

"I urge motorists to consider if they need to drive, and delay their trip if possible," Ms Pavey said.

Transport for NSW Coordinator General Marg Prendergast said motorists who were on the road should be aware that a number of traffic signals were out across the Sydney area.

A woman crosses a street during a severe thunderstorm in Sydney.

A woman crosses a street during a severe thunderstorm in Sydney. Photo: Daniel Munoz

Severe thunderstorm warning cancelled

The Bureau of Meteorology has cancelled its detailed severe thunderstorm warning for the Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong forecast areas.

"The immediate threat of severe thunderstorms has passed, but the situation will continue to be monitored and further warnings will be issued if necessary," the bureau said just after 12.40pm.

"A more general severe thunderstorm warning remains current for the Metropolitan and parts of the Hunter, Illawarra and Central Tablelands districts."

 

 

Blackouts hit Lane Cove

About 1400 properties are in the dark at Lane Cove. That is separate to the previously reported 700 homes in Redfern without power. 

Emergency crews are on their way there. 

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