SES Auburn Commander Jamie Newman said his team had attended to 137 storms in the last 12 months, a quiet year on average, but they were expecting the next year to be much worse based on the severe weather predictions released by the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) last week.
“According to BOM, Australians can expect an above average cyclone season with an increased risk of widespread flooding over the east and north,” he said.
“Thankfully our area has not seen a lot of issues out of the recent weather events – mostly blocked gutters causing some minor flooding and roof collapses within properties.
“The SES is an emergency service and do not provide site visits outside of emergency situations, however we highly encourage you to talk to your family and friends with regards to what to do to be ‘storm prepared’.”
Jamie said that in a storm, you should stay away from windows, fallen powerlines, flooded drains and the SES’s number one rule, ‘If it is flooded, forget it’; never drive through flood water.
For further info on how to be storm prepared, visit ses.nsw.gov.au/storm-resources.
