"It was a slow-moving storm with that warm humid air moving along the coast... that allowed for that increase of moisture," Byron Doyle from the New South Wales Bureau of meteorology told AFP. Energy companies reported that more than 40,000 customers were affected by power outages at the peak of the storm overnight, with more than 5,000 still without power early Saturday. The rescues were "all for vehicles in flood water," a New South Wales state emergency services spokesperson told AFP. Flights were delayed at Sydney's airport, while the storm caused havoc on some of the city's train lines. The Sydney storm comes as recovery efforts continue in Australia's flood-ravaged northeastern state of Queensland, which over the past week has seen record-breaking rainfall, forcing hundreds of evacuations and thousands of requests for help.

Source: The Nation Bangkok February 09, 2019 05:03 UTC