NSW: Heavy rain causes flash floods in state's north
08 Dec 2008 6:04 PM
SYDNEY, Dec 8 AAP - Severe rainstorms have hit NSW's Hunter Valley and the state's north, causing flash flooding and minor property damage, emergency services say.
The Bureau of Meteorology said the areas north of Newcastle were the worse affected during storms on Monday.
Cessnock in the Hunter Valley copped 36mm of rain in just 30 minutes, nearby Tocal recorded 48mm and Williamtown had 28mm, the bureau said.
"There would have been flash flooding with those sort of rainfall numbers," bureau spokesman Simon Lewis told AAP.
There were also reports of a large hailstorm in the area of Raymond Terrace, also in the Hunter, he said.
Heavy rain was also recorded around Inverell, between Moree and Armidale in the north of the state.
State Emergency Services (SES) spokesman Phil Campbell said the service had received a small number of calls from people about minor property damage such as leaking roofs.
He said the number of calls could rise as people got home from work and discovered damage.
The bureau has forecast more showers over the next few hours, with a thunderstorm warning still current for most of the NSW's northeast.
"There's still a chance there could be some more heavy rainfall totals," said Mr Lewis.
