Tornado and wild weather sweep across NSW
It’s been a dramatic day of weather across New South Wales, with a rare tornado spotted near the town of Young and a string of other emergencies unfolding as storms battered the state.
The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed that around 3:30 in the afternoon, a tornado was observed northwest of Young in the South Western Slopes region. Cameras from a Rural Fire Service fire tower captured what appeared to be a powerful storm cell forming near the small community of Tubbul. Those images were quickly sent through to fire behaviour analysts and then to the Bureau, which issued an immediate warning. Residents in the area were urged to stay indoors and remain alert.
Fortunately, early assessments suggested the tornado was short-lived and did not leave a trail of major destruction. No injuries were reported, and emergency crews had not received significant damage reports by late afternoon. Still, authorities warned that conditions remained dangerous, with the risk of hail, damaging winds, and heavy rainfall persisting well into the night.
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- Coastal Flood Advisory Brings Caution to Shore Communities
The stormy weather wasn’t limited to central NSW. Along the coast, in the Illawarra, an industrial scare was triggered when rainwater caused a reaction at BlueScope Steel’s Port Kembla plant. Water hit a by-product in a slag pit at the steelmaking facility, producing a loud steam explosion around 4pm. Residents reported hearing the blast up to 20 kilometres away, with some even saying their windows shook. Thankfully, no one was injured, and the company confirmed no major damage occurred. An investigation into the incident will now be carried out.
Meanwhile, the State Emergency Service was kept busy with dozens of calls for assistance. One of the more serious situations involved three bushwalkers in the Royal National Park who became stranded as water levels quickly rose around them at Wattamolla. SES crews used a raft to reach the hikers and bring them safely back to dry land. In total, the SES had responded to around 30 incidents in Wollongong alone within the past 24 hours, mostly related to leaking roofs and fallen trees.
Authorities warned that the severe conditions were far from over. Heavy rainfall was forecast to continue overnight, with the heaviest falls expected between midnight and the early morning hours as a low-pressure system shifted across the state. Some communities were told to prepare for flash flooding, with up to 100 millimetres of rain possible in just six hours. Along with flooding risks, large hailstones and damaging winds were also a real possibility.
Meteorologists reminded residents that tornadoes, while rare in Australia, can occur whenever severe thunderstorms develop. On average, between 10 and 20 tornadoes are reported nationwide each year. With weather systems still unsettled, people across NSW were urged to remain vigilant, stay indoors where possible, and avoid travelling through floodwaters.
It’s been a day that underscored just how quickly the weather can turn, bringing everything from a tornado in the state’s interior, to explosions and flood rescues along the coast—all in the space of just a few hours.
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