Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
ABC News
ABC News
National

NSW floods cut off towns, roads destroyed across Illawarra and South Coast in week of ferocious storms

The Illawarra's iconic Mount Keira has been scarred with another landslide on the southern side. (ABC Illawarra: Timothy Fernandez)

Like New South Wales communities to the north, landslips and fast-moving floodwater from torrential rain have also cut off communities and caused major damage to infrastructure around the Illawarra and South Coast, south of Sydney.

In the past week 350 millimetres of rain fell in Wollongong, 386mm at Kiama, 305mm at Moss Vale, 458mm at Ulladulla, and 464mm at Nowra.

Mount Keira, a landmark of the Illawarra escarpment, has been scarred by the wild weather with a landslip on the southern side of the 463-metre-tall mountain.

In a statement to the ABC the Mt Keira Rural Fire Service said the landslip was one of several along the escarpment.

"We have noticed the scar on Mt Keira from a 2012 land slip has grown in size overnight and have found an enormous amount of mud and debris surrounding our station near the bottom of Mount Keira," it said.

A scar on Mt Keira from a 2012 landslip has grown in size and an enormous amount of mud and debris is near the bottom. ( ABC Illawarra: Timothy Fernandez)

Closer to the Princes Motorway work continues to drain a private dam halfway up Mount Ousley. 

Road freight on the South Coast was stopped for several hours yesterday as Transport NSW closed all three lanes of the M1 on Mt Ousley because of concerns about the integrity of the dam.

Wollongong City SES and the local RFS used a network of pipes, hoses, and sandbags to pump thousands of litres of water from the dam.

Crews worked to pump water from a private dam near saturated land near Mount Ousley.  (Supplied: Wollongong SES City Unit)

The local SES has responded to 398 requests for help across Wollongong, Shellharbour, and Dapto.

Kangaroo Valley stranded

The naturally-enclosed Kangaroo Valley has been isolated by multiple landslides.

A landslip also caused the closure of Moss Vale Road on Monday, with the Cambewarra to Fitzroy Falls roads and Kangaroo Valley and Jamberoo Mountains roads also closed.

There has been no postal service, rubbish collection, or power, and access to schools have been impacted, businesses have not been able to operate, and internet services are intermittent.

Some food and medical supplies are being supplied through the SES.

Landslips and fallen trees on the Moss Vale Rd on Barrengarry Mountain have cut access to Kangaroo Valley. (Supplied: Kangaroo Valley RFS)

The Shoalhaven Council hopes by the end of Wednesday it may have made the roads safe enough for people to be escorted in and out of the village.

Shoalhaven disaster zone

Moderate flooding is continuing at Nowra and around St Georges Basin, washing through low-lying streets and homes.

The saturated catchment is causing many trees to fall and has left the Shoalhaven Council with a major bill for road repairs.

A landslip has caused the closure of the Wattamola Rd near Berry. (ABC Illawarra: Jessica Clifford)

The council's manager of technical services Craig Exton said the damage was extensive.

"We have crews out on the roads everywhere we can to try and assess the damage to try and fix the damage as fast as they can, but it is going to be a long process."

The Illawarra Highway is expected to be closed for weeks between Robertson and Moss Vale due to a sinkhole at Burrawang.  (Supplied: Hume Police )

In the Wingecarribee Shire, the Illawarra Highway is expected to be closed for weeks between Robertson and Moss Vale due to a sinkhole at Burrawang.

In the Wollondilly Shire, the small village of Yerranderie is also expected to be isolated for several weeks because of damaged roads.

Beaches smashed

The storm surges and heavy swells have caused extensive coastal erosion.

Sand cliffs known as "scarping" have been carved along the coastline after local beaches were battered by five-metre swell.

The world's whitest sand at Hyams Beach has a red coat after a dump of red seaweed.

Photographer Jayde Clarke captured the event after the major storms.

Red algae has washed up on Hyams Beach. (Supplied: Jayde Clark)

Marine biologists said the red seaweed was detached from the sea floor and washed up on the beach.

This seaweed "wrack" will slowly be decomposed by microbes and small macroorganisms, such as small crustaceans, and serve as food to ecological communities on the sandy beaches.

Beaches along the Illawarra coast have suffered massive erosion during the east coast low. (ABC Illawarra: Timothy Fernandez)

In a spot of good news for the region, after more than a week of living under an evacuation order warning, the CBD of Picton has been given the all clear.

Flood evacuation orders were also lifted for Sussex Inlet and St Georges Basin.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.