We are continuing our constant and close monitoring of lakes, waterways, beaches and roads for flooding and storm impacts, as an East Coast Low (ECL) impacts the Coast. We are also continuing to send further construction crews out to impacted regions across the Coast to mobilise our combined flood and storm recovery efforts.

We recognise the considerable community effort undertaken to get prepared, and thank the community for their combined efforts and resilience while also looking out for one another during this weather event.

For emergency help in floods and storms or urgent assistance for impacted properties, call the NSW State Emergency Service on 132 500. 

In life threatening situations call triple zero (000) immediately.

Current situation

The NSW Government announced earlier this week that the Central Coast has been included in the Natural Disaster Declaration, which will allow people affected by this weather event to be eligible for flood assistance.

While recorded rainfall has been lower than Bureau of Meteorology forecasts over the last few days, localised heavy downpours have been experienced in Gosford and within the Coast’s catchments, which has lead to flash flooding. Strong, damaging winds are also expected. Dangerous surf conditions remain along the coastline.

Crews have noted significant beach erosion, particularly on some of the more northern beaches of the Coast including Soldiers Beach, The Entrance North Beach and Lakes Beaches. We are continually monitoring coastal erosion along the Coast's beaches with identified issues currently limited to beach access infrastructure in some of our northern beach locations. There has been no observed or reported impact to private properties, including in The Entrance North or Wamberal, from coastal erosion impacts.

The NSW State Emergency Service (SES) issued flood evacuation order for residents around Tuggerah Lake and the surrounding areas, as well as other low lying areas including Wyong and Yarramalong remains in place.

People who live in locations around Tuggerah Lakes are being asked to evacuate. NSW SES are advising the following locations that they need to evacuate due to rising flood water:

• Berkeley Vale 
• Chittaway Bay
• Chittaway Point
• Long Jetty
• Tacoma 
• Tacoma South 
• The Entrance North
• South Tacoma Road 
• McDonagh Street 
• Pollock Avenue 
• Wolseley Avenue
• Panonia Road 
• Wyong Aged Care Facility
• Low lying areas around the Wyong Racecourse and the Kooindah Waters Golf Course 
• Low lying areas along Allison Road, Old Maitland Road, Yarramalong, Collies Lane, McPherson Road, Gavenlock Road, Mike Jennings Road and River Road 
• Gavenlock Road area Pacific Highway (Southern end Anzac Road - northern end McPherson Road to the north) 

A flood evacuation warning has also been issued by NSW SES for the following areas of Wisemans Ferry for properties along River Road from Douglas Creek to the edge of the Wisemans Ferry town centre, and properties along Singleton Rd from the Wisemans Ferry town centre to the western edge of Laughtondale. The river height is expected to exceed the major flood level of 4.2m today. River communities at Gunderman and Spencer will be most affected at high tide. The biggest impacts should be seen later this afternoon, with possible further rises tomorrow.

Residents and businesses on the Peninsula in Woy Woy, Davistown, Empire Bay, Booker Bay and West Gosford may be impacted by flash flooding caused by heavy rain and high tides from Brisbane Waters which will see flooding in surrounding low-lying streets. The Central Coast Highway at Racecourse Road, West Gosford is likely to be affected with the water at this location may taking some time to drain back into Brisbane Water through the mangroves. Streets will be passable, however you can expect to see large amounts of water on the road surface. 

We continue to work closely with the NSW SES and communities in impacted regions to ensure they can access support if needed. Council continues to fulfill its role in supporting the lead Emergency Service Provider, NSW SES, providing resources, people and equipment to assist their emergency and recovery plans.

🛑 Never drive through floodwaters 

🛑 If there is water over an open road drive slowly and keep your wash to a minimum - keep in mind this is likely salt water, and excess wash from your car can also damage nearby infrastructure and properties.

Evacuating

If you are advised by an emergency services officer to evacuate, please do so. If asked to evacuate, please seek shelter with family and friends in the first instance or make other accommodation arrangements. If you are unable to find accommodation, an Evacuation Centre has been established.

Evacuation Centre open

• Diggers at The Entrance - 315 The Entrance Rd, Long Jetty NSW

The evacuation centre is open 24 hours. For more information about the evacuation centre call 0436 913 302.

What you need to do

When an Evacuation Warning is issued:

• lift possessions and important items above the predicted flood height
• leave as early as possible to avoid restricted roads
• take pets, essential items, warm clothes, medicines, insurance documents and valuables with you
• share this information with family, friends and neighbours and help others where possible.

When an Evacuation Order is issued and you leave your house:

• turn off the electricity and gas at the mains before you leave and turn off and secure any gas bottles
• take your pets with you
• never enter or travel through floodwater
• keep listening to your local radio station for information, updates and advice
• follow your Home or Business FloodSafe Plan
• follow all instructions given to you by emergency services.

Recovery

The NSW Government has announced the Central Coast has been included in the Natural Disaster Declaration which will allow people affected by this weather event to be eligible for flood assistance. Council may be able to gain assistance to restore public infrastructure and assets that have been damaged as a result of this natural disaster.

The Disaster Relief Grant is administered by Resilience NSW, more information can be found at their website: nsw.gov.au/disaster-recovery/disaster-relief-and-support.

Disaster affected people can be granted immediate assistance if they do not have the financial resources to meet their immediate needs. Financial assistance can be sourced from the Evacuation Centre who will assess and also refer to appropriate agencies such as Samaritans for support and material aid and Chaplaincy services.

As we transition from emergency response to recovery phase, we will continue to provide updates to the community on the support that is available to them.

Waterways

At 7.20am this morning, Tuggerah Lake at Long Jetty was recorded at 1.09m, with minor flooding currently occurring. The lake will remain steady until tomorrow morning and then slowly recede about 0.1m each day over several days. We need to wait until water recedes before we can activate any large scale clean-up works around Tuggerah Lakes. 

The Hawkesbury River (at Wisemans Ferry) has been recorded at 5.01m, which is above the major flood level (4.2m). Levels may reach around 5.10 metres today on the high tide, with major flooding above the March 2021 event. Further rises are possible, and we expect increased amounts of debris to pass through the Hawkesbury and arrive on Coast beaches over the coming days.

At Brisbane Waters we are still experiencing a very large tidal anomaly, with a large ocean swell building today. Tonight’s high tide will cause minor flooding in low lying areas of the Woy Woy Town Centre, parts of Booker Bay, Davistown and Empire Bay. The main impact is likely to be Central Coast Highway West Gosford, at the Racecourse Road intersection, where westbound traffic lanes may again be underwater.
 
The Entrance Channel has experienced significant expansion as we have progressively widened the channel since Monday 28 February in preparation for this severe weather event, while natural scouring has also occurred. The Entrance Channel is currently flowing out at low tide. 
 
Although it is important that The Entrance Channel remains open during this weather event, it should be noted that channel conditions are not the key driver of peak flood levels: Tuggerah Lakes flood levels are driven by catchment rainfall, as well as affected by tides, wind conditions and wave action. We are experiencing significant flows coming down our creeks and rivers and with high tides expected to remain, water in our catchments will be slow to drain into the ocean. Maximum outflow through the channel occurs at low tide.

The effects of rainfall

Rainfall over the last week has been about 200mm for most of the Central Coast and over 300mm in the upper catchment areas, compared to around 440mm in 4 days that was experienced during the 2020 flood event which saw Tuggerah Lakes peak at 1.67m. Tuggerah Lakes flood levels are driven by catchment rainfall. Although it is important that the Entrance Channel remains open as it has, channel condition is not the driver of peak flood levels. We are experiencing significant flows coming down our creeks and rivers and with high tides expected to remain, water in our catchments will be slow to drain into the ocean. Bureau of Meteorology have confirmed that further rainfall is forecast from today into early next week which may result in renewed moderate flooding at Tuggerah Lake and other riverine rises or flash flooding. 

Learn more about the hydrology and flooding in Tuggerah Lakes.

Beaches

An increasing easterly (E) swell of 2.2m is forecast for today, however swell is expected to rise considerably to a 4.5m southerly (S) swell later tonight and into Wednesday. Dangerous surf conditions and winds of up to 25km per hour remain along the Central Coast region.

All Central Coast beaches and The Grant McBride baths are currently closed. Staff are emptying small pool at The Grant McBride baths today and will backfill it later in week when we have better water quality in ocean. The ferry at Wisemans Ferry has also been closed.

Crews are monitoring significant erosion at particularly on some of the more northern beaches of the Coast such as Soldiers Beach, North Entrance Beach and Lakes Beaches, as well as some minor erosion around Terrigal lagoon due to high tides and waves. There has been no observed or reported impact to private properties, including in The Entrance North or Wamberal, from coastal erosion impacts during this weather event.

With current large dangerous sea conditions and large tidal variations do not attempt to access rock platforms to observe sea conditions.

Debris

Our crews have been monitoring and removing debris on the coastline, including at Patonga where floodwater debris have been evident for the last few days with more debris is expected as a result of the floodwaters coming down from the upper Hawkesbury River.

Debris have also been observed to be flowing out at The Entrance. Mud and wrack may present at Tuggerah Lakes foreshore areas, but we will not be able to fully appraise this until lake levels drop further. 

Pollution alerts

Heavy rain and flooding can cause stormwater run-off and sewage overflows to pollute our lagoons, waterways, rivers, lakes and beaches. We strongly advise everyone to not swim or go in the water:

• at our beaches for at least 24 hours after heavy rain
• at our lagoons, waterways, rivers and lakes at least three days after heavy rain.

Pollution alerts are currently in place for a number of Central Coast beaches, head to the Beachwatch website for daily pollution forecasts.

If you come in contact with our waterways and feel unwell, please seek medical advice from a doctor or hospital. Call Triple Zero (000) in an emergency.

Waste Services

Council's waste management facilities remain open.

Regular bin collections

Weekly kerbside bin collections are continuing as normal. For properties on sections of road currently closed to vehicles, kerbside services will resume as soon as the roads re-open.

Keep your bins on the kerbside (if safe to do so) until they are collected. Collections will continue over the weekends if necessary.

Bulk household flood impacted waste removal

If you need to clear excess flood impacted bulk household waste and debris from your property, you can book a standard bulk kerbside collection for both excess garden waste and normal bulk waste accepted by 1coast. 

You can book up to six general or green waste bulk kerbside collections a year, reset annually on 1 February. For more information head to 1coast.com.au.

Please note we are experiencing some minor delays due to high demand and severe weather impacts. Please do not place your waste on the kerbside until your booking date is confirmed.

You can also dispose of flood impacted bulk waste directly at one of Council’s two waste management facilities at Woy Woy or Jilliby (reduced fees apply).

Mixed waste - We are waiving the EPA levy for flood impacted waste of $147.10 tonne.
Organics - Current Minimum charges are $20.

Small volumes of seagrass and vegetation debris from lake and river flooding can be placed into your green waste bins. Larger volumes of uncontaminated seagrass and vegetation debris which is able to be manually handled and recycled through composting can be booked as a bulk kerbside collection through 1Coast. 

Sandbags

For sandbag disposal, split the bags to remove sand and place in your garden where it won’t wash away. Place bags in the red lid garbage bin.

Roads and transport

Crews have been on the ground all week and working overnight responding to trees town and flood impacts on roads in suburbs around Tuggerah Lake and into the valley region. Many parts of the Coast have experienced flooding, landslips and fallen trees. Road signs and barriers are in place to advise residents and motorists where storm impacts have occurred – please avoid these areas where possible over the coming days.

Over 80 road closures have occurred due to flooding. While some have reopened, many are still closed. For full details please see our road closures website.

During this weather event, we have repaired over 4,200 potholes across the Coast. We need to wait until water recedes before we can activate any large scale clean-up works around Tuggerah Lakes. Our Emergency Incident Committee is continuing to liaise with Transport NSW to collectively address impacts on roads.

Wisemans Ferry Road remains blocked in multiple locations due to landslips and fallen trees. With river levels not expected to peak until the middle of the week and the repair of electricity services needing to occur, it may be some time before crews can commence clean-up works and have the road fully opened.

Please obey signs and do not move any road barriers or signage – these are for your own safety and that of others.

Heavy rain is expected to continue. Stay inside if possible. If you need to drive any where please plan extra travel time, take extra care.

🛑 Never walk, drive or ride through floodwaters 

🛑 If there is water over an open road drive slowly and keep your wash to a minimum - keep in mind this is likely salt water, and excess wash from your car can also damage nearby infrastructure and properties.

Water and sewer services

The extended weather event we are experiencing has inundated our region’s sewerage system, parts of the network are currently under water and breaks or leaks have been caused at some locations. Our crews are working around the clock to resolve impacts but unfortunately for parts of the sewerage system that are currently under water we need to wait until flood waters recede to begin any necessary repair works.

Residents in Davistown, St Huberts Island, Tacoma and South Tacoma may experience sewer service interruptions. If you are experiencing a sewer system disruption please call Council on 1300 463 954.

We have mobilised additional tanker trucks and contractors to assist with recovery of this system and in Davistown, port-a-loos are on Lintern Street, Mirreen Avenue, Illoura Reserve (corner of Pine Avenue) and Amy Street for customers impacted by system outages.

In Davistown and Tacoma, our crews are out recovering the parts of the vacuum sewer systems that are accessible. Depending on the intensity and volume of rainfall over the coming days, we could see some more overflows from the sewer system. In addition, parts of our sewer system are still underwater and will continue to be until flooding recedes. Residents are reminded to stay out of the water and observe pollution signs which have been erected.

Some residents West Gosford may also start to experience service interruptions. If you live in one of these areas, please help minimise discharge to the sewer system, such as reducing water going down the drain.

Upper Mooney Dam is at 100 percent and has minimal overflow during rain periods. For all current dam water levels please go to the Love Water website. 

For all current water service interruptions please go to the Water outages page of our website.

Prioritising works

Call volumes increase during times of storm events, power outages or localised flooding. Crews are responding to issues as quickly as possible in these conditions giving due consideration to changing flood waters, fallen powerlines and other safety concerns. We continue to prioritise issues relating to recovery and clean-up following the storm with all our available resources being directed to support impacted residents. 

We apologise for any inconvenience and encourage Central Coast residents to continue letting us know immediately by calling 1300 463 954 at any time day or night – so that the problem can be resolved quickly.

Pollution events

Terrigal Lagoon, Wamberal Lagoon, Avoca Lagoon, Cochran Lagoon, Lake Macquarie near Koowong Road at Gwandalan, Avoca Beach near the SLSC and the outlet of Salt Water Creek have all been affected by sewer overflows and stormwater runoff – we strongly advise against swimming at these locations. Pollution signs have been placed at these locations. Currently there is a sewer break at The Entrance and our teams are on site to address this.

Depending on the intensity and volume of rainfall over the coming days, we could see some more overflows from the sewer system. In addition, parts of our sewer system are still underwater. This includes parts of the sewer system impacted by the Tuggerah Lake flooding. These parts of the system will continue to be underwater until flooding recedes. Residents are reminded to stay out of the water and observe pollution signs which have been erected.

With any blockage or overflow, our primary concern is the health and safety of the public and our environment. We follow strict procedures to contain and control, then investigate and remediate. You can let us know about an overflow anytime - day or night - by calling 1300 463 954

We strongly advise everyone to not swim or go in the water:

• at our beaches for at least 24 hours after heavy rain
• at our lagoons, waterways, rivers and lakes at least three days after heavy rain.

Pollution alerts are currently in place for a number of Central Coast beaches, head to the Beachwatch website for daily pollution forecasts.

If you come in contact with our waterways and feel unwell, please seek medical advice from a doctor or hospital. Call Triple Zero (000) in an emergency.

We are asking residents and visitors to conserve water

It might seem like a weird ask with all this water around at the moment, but we're asking our community to conserve water as our Water Treatment Plants at Mardi and Somersby work to process highly turbid source water that has entered our dams as a result of the rainfall.

Any savings on water use over the next couple of days will greatly assist us in managing water supply through this severe weather event.

Some tips to save water:
💧 Only use the dishwasher or washing machine when you have a full load
💧 Don't leave taps running
💧 Take shorter showers – aim for less than four minutes
💧 Use a broom, brush or rake to sweep and clean outdoor paths and paving instead of hosing them
💧 Use natural rainwater to water indoor plants

Power outages

For updates on power outages across the Coast visit the Ausgrid website or call 13 13 88 for assistance.

Take care out there

Residents and motorists are reminded during storm events to:

• Drive to the conditions of the day.
• Listen to local radio stations for updates and advice.
• Never ride, drive or walk through floodwater - if it's flooded, forget it!
• Avoid swimming and any other recreational contact with the Coast’s waterways during (and for a few days after) the current significant rainfall conditions. Extended heavy rainfall increases the risk of our waterways being impacted by pollution due to stormwater run-off, which can be extremely dangerous.
• Call the SES on 13 25 00 for emergency help in floods and storms.

For more information

• For the latest information listen to your local ABC radio station.
• Follow the SES on Facebook or visit the NSW SES website. 
• For the latest weather, warnings, rainfall and river heights visit the Bureau of Meteorology website.
• Council emergency updates and latest alerts are on our Facebook page.