NSW weather: Storm hits Hunter and Central Coast, BOM predicts heavy rainfall and winds
Updated
Another storm has hit the Hunter region and the Central Coast of New South Wales after two days of severe weather caused widespread blackouts and property damage in parts of the state.
The latest update from the Bureau of Meteorology, issued at 4:10pm, said the storm was moving over southern parts of the Mid North Coast, bringing with it heavy rain.
The severe thunderstorm has caused more power outages, with BOM warning heavy rainfall, large hailstones and damaging winds should be expected throughout the afternoon.
Areas that may be affected include Seal Rocks, Port Macquarie, Taree, Kempsey, Armidale, Tenterfield, Glen Innes, Inverell, Warialda, Boggabilla, Ashford, Bendemeer and Bingara.
Ausgrid said it was working to restore power to 700 homes in Macmasters Beach on the Central Coast, and another 900 homes also on the Central Coast and in Sydney's northern suburbs were still without power today following Friday's severe storm.
State Emergency Services (SES) volunteers received more than 1,300 call-outs on Saturday, mainly to help repair leaking roofs, fix broken windows and to clear fallen trees and powerlines.
They will continue to assist in clean-up efforts until Monday morning.
Emergency services are advising residents to storm-proof their homes by clearing their gutters and securing outdoor furniture when safe to do so.
'Biggest hail I've ever seen'
North-west of Sydney bore the brunt of Saturday's storm.
"Those storm cells that have come through have impacted heavily around the Kellyville, Rouse Hill and Castle Hill area," said Ms Pritchard.
Three women, aged in their 60s, were sitting on a park bench at Corbett Gardens in Bowral when they were struck by a bolt of lightning.
They have been taken to hospital, with one woman suffering serious burns to her body and the other two treated for shock.
People took to social media to share photos of large hail, which damaged several cars and was described by one Twitter user as the "biggest hail I've ever seen".
Topics: weather, storm-event, penrith-2750, nsw, campbelltown-2560, australia, palm-beach-2108, shellharbour-2529, wollongong-2500
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