More storms are heading for some of the areas worst affected by recent wild weather in New South Wales, with forecasters predicting more storm cells will arrive in the areas on Saturday afternoon.
The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting storms in Newcastle, parts of the Hunter region and the central coast, parts of which have already been declared natural disaster zones by the NSW government.
The storms will not be as powerful as those earlier in the week but have the potential to cause further damage in areas that are already flooded. Sydney, which was also hit by the storms, is forecast to have rain through Saturday evening and Sunday.
The acting prime minister, Warren Truss, visited the Hunter on Friday, as it braced for another storm, to announce the commonwealth would grant people affected by the storms money under the disaster recovery program, which includes a one-off payment of up to $1,000 for each adult and $400 for each child.
“It’s obvious that this has been a major event. I know that local people are used to heavy rain and storms but this has obviously been one of those extraordinary events that comes along not all that often,” Truss said.
“The government is keen to work with the NSW government and local authorities to ensure that damage is repaired as quickly as possible, that roads and other facilities are back to normal as quickly as possible.”
Thousands of people are facing a weekend without electricity as authorities work to repair damaged power lines in the Hunter region and central coast. Truss could not put a figure on the number of people affected by the storm but said it was in the thousands.
“The reconnection of power and water is obviously the highest priority in these circumstances. Some progress has been made but it really is a challenge to get all of the power lines up and running and I know that the NSW authorities are devoting all possible effort to make that happen,” he said.
“There are thousands who are affected, some more seriously than others. Clearly our efforts are focused on those who have been most adversely affected, unliveable homes, don’t have electricity, therefore, often don’t have phone connections and all those sorts of things. Those are the kind of issues we need to deal with. That’s the first priority.”
The premier, Mike Baird, warned on Thursday any more rain in flooded areas could add to the damage before the forecast was updated to include storms.
“You can’t really appreciate the size and the scope of the devastation until you see it firsthand and it is nothing short of devastating, what we’ve seen,” he said.
“Homes, cattle, this whole landscape has been completely and utterly devastated, floodwaters everywhere, and a long time until we get back or get this community back on its feet.”
Insurers have estimated the damage at $160m but that figure is expected to rise in coming days.
