A ferocious storm battered Australia’s east coast on Saturday, turning a routine drive into tragedy in Sydney. Around 4 PM local time, approximately 90 kilometers south of central Sydney, a massive tree branch crashed onto a moving vehicle, killing the female driver instantly.
Emergency services rushed to the scene after reports of the devastating incident. The woman behind the wheel was pronounced dead at the spot, while the male passenger in the front seat suffered minor injuries. Remarkably, two passengers in the back escaped unharmed, according to reports.
The powerful storm unleashed gale-force winds and torrential rains across New South Wales’ eastern coastal regions. Northern Sydney areas saw sudden flash floods, disrupting daily life and causing flight delays at Sydney Airport.
State Emergency Services were overwhelmed, receiving hundreds of distress calls statewide. Officials managed to rescue four individuals trapped by the chaos. Superintendent Matt Kirby warned that conditions would remain dire into Sunday, with heavy rainfall expected in Sydney and surrounding northern and southern areas.
“Avoid driving through floodwaters and be cautious where you park your vehicles—trees can fall at any moment,” Kirby urged in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Beaches around Sydney were shut down due to dangerous swells, and police advised the public to steer clear of areas prone to large waves. This incident underscores the raw power of nature in one of Australia’s most populated cities.
Meanwhile, in a related development, Victoria state issued flash flood emergency alerts for coastal towns on Thursday. Social media footage from areas near the iconic Great Ocean Road, about 120 km southwest of Melbourne, showed cars swept away by raging waters. Power outages lasted hours, but no fatalities were reported.
Emergency spokesperson Erin Mason confirmed to ABC Radio that while the deluge was severe—Lorne recorded 170 mm of rain in seven hours, shattering previous records—no lives were lost. Fires raging across Victoria have also destroyed nearly 900 properties, including 260 homes, scorching over 410,000 hectares.