Flights to Sydney halted by rain and wind, flood warning issued

Strong winds and heavy rain forced airlines to cancel many domestic flights from Sydney, Australia on Tuesday, and an intense low-pressure weather system offshore is forecast to cause flash floods in parts of the country's southeast, UNN reports with reference to Reuters.

Details

Qantas Airways canceled at least 11 domestic flights from Sydney, and Virgin Australia canceled 12, according to the Sydney Airport website. International flights were not affected.

"Some services on Virgin Australia's network were affected by adverse weather in Sydney and Newcastle today," a Virgin Australia spokesman said.

Meteorologists reported that wind gusts of up to 125 km/h could hit Sydney's coastal areas on Tuesday, and that up to 120 mm of precipitation, which is approximately the average for July, could fall.

"The system is quite dynamic and quite strong, and we expect conditions to worsen in the afternoon," said weather bureau forecaster Gabrielle Woodhouse.

"This means we have a higher risk of flash flooding with the possibility of quite heavy rainfall developing in a short period of time," she explained.

The weather system is expected to move towards the Tasman Sea on Wednesday and weaken by Thursday, Woodhouse said.

More than 1,000 volunteers have been mobilized in New South Wales to respond to the weather event, state emergency services said.

Flooding in Australia claimed the lives of two people22.05.25, 09:54 • 2575 views