A number of Illawarra residents hit the stick-littered sand at the weekend to help clean up the mess from the deluge.
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In North Wollongong, a family filled their garbage bag with any trash they could find tangled up in the driftwood.
Nearby, mounds of furniture, a suitcase, sheets of fencing and bags of household rubbish were piled high awaiting collection.
All 17 of Wollongong's patrolled beaches remain closed due to water quality and debris.
"Lifeguards will continue to monitor the situation and will reopen the beaches when it is safe to do so," Wollongong CIty Council said.
"We encourage people to stay off the beaches, or use a high degree of caution, due to potential safety impacts of rubbish and debris."
Further north, amid a similar scene of wet trash and storm debris, a bee emergency was unfolding
"There are many commercial boxed broken bee hives, with 100s of bees hovering, about 500 metres north of Woonona pool on the beach," a woman posted in a Facebook community group.
"Can anyone save these bees?
"They have been washed down from the creek after the storm."
Meantime, Woonona Kebab House on Saturday sent out the (one-day) offer of a free meal to all the helpers.
"We are very devastated to see the amount damage caused by the heavy rain and flooding to all our affected community," the eatery posted on its Facebook page.
"Whoever is around doing community work cleaning up our roads, beaches, parks, their backyards, their shops, theie home, have been busy all day cleaning up the mess nature has left behind, FEEL MORE THAN WELCOME TO GRAB A FEED ON US FREE OF CHARGE.
"I invite all you who have been genuinely busy cleaning up to come eat, it's the least we can do, today we will be open for the community."
