The weekend's wet weather took a toll on dozens of Warilla residents and kept the region’s emergency services busy as rain wreaked havoc on roads and properties.
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Illawarra SES volunteers, along with police, ambulance and Fire and Rescue NSW crews, were called out to nearly 50 jobs on Friday night as the region copped a quick-fire drenching.
Shellharbour and Warilla were the worst suburbs hit, experiencing 125mm of rain in just 24 hours.
Mt Warrigal resident Jean Lamacchia’s home felt the full force of Friday night’s freak storm as it ripped through her backyard, completely destroying her newly renovated enclosed entertainment area.
The gush of water that surged through her yard was so strong that it drowned her two-year-old dog.
‘‘It’s just devastating, it looks like a tornado has ripped through here,’’ she said.
‘‘It must have been a massive gush of water, it’s come up about two metres ... the whole area is just destroyed - the water pushed the spa through the broken the glass sliding doors, which smashed, our front retaining wall has completely collapsed, it’s just a mess.’’
Ms Haaz estimated her Landy Drive home had sustained around $80,000 worth of damage in the storm.
Warilla resident Kevin Cuttz told the Mercury his Woodford Avenue address copped a soaking, leaving him with a sodden backyard.
‘‘We’ve got our own private beach on the street ... it’s just a mess, there is stuff everywhere ... I couldn’t even walk in the backyard, the water just kept washing my feet away, I’ve never seen it come down with such force,’’ he said.
‘‘We had a flood here about 2 1/2 years ago but this is the most powerful storm I’ve ever seen, there was cracker lightening and the rain just kept coming.’’
Lake Illawarra police acting inspector Steve Worthington said Burra Place and Minga Place were among the worst affected streets in Shellharbour, suffering extensive damage as a result of the roads ‘‘lifting’’.
The storm also caused a partial ceiling collapse at Warilla Grove shopping centre, however stores were able to be opened for business on Saturday morning.
SES duty officer Grant McClory said volunteers had conducted seven rescues in Shellharbour and Blackbutt on Friday night, freeing people trapped in cars as the rain pelted down and flooded some streets.
Mr McClory said George Street in Warilla was heavily flooded, forcing Warrigal Care nursing home to consider evacuating residents.
‘‘There were cars floating down the street,’’ he said.
‘‘The water just came down really hard.’’
A total of 27 staff and patients were evacuated from Shellharbour Private Hospital on Friday night.
Three adult patients and a seven-year-old child were transported to Wollongong Hospital as a precaution.
Other patients were relocated to different wards within the hospital.
No-one was injured in the heavy rain.
The SES had another 30 jobs to clear on Saturday, heading out to homes across the region to attend to leaky roofs and backyard flooding.
Volunteers were still working yesterday, clearing branches off the road between Nowra and Wollongong.
The wet weather is set to continue for the rest of the week with showers predicted until Saturday.
