Strong winds are battering the Illawarra – stay safe out there! Photo: NSW SES Wollongong.
Gusts of more than 100 km/h have battered the Illawarra this morning – and the wind isn’t stopping any time soon.
The strongest gust buffeted Bellambi at about 9 am and was recorded at 117 km/h.
Wollongong recorded a gust of 98 km/h shortly after 9 am, Shellharbour 102 km/h at 8:50 am and Nowra copped a 106 km/h blast at 4 am.
Gusts of 80 to 100 km/h continued to be recorded across the region to 11 am.
All that wind has wrought havoc on homes, roads and the power grid.
About 8000 customers across the Illawarra remain without power, although the lights are back on for thousands of homes in Unanderra, Berkeley and Farmborough Heights after the Unanderra substation was repaired this morning.
An Endeavour Energy spokesperson said there were more than 300 hazard reports in, and each report must be attended and repaired individually by Endeavour staff.
“We have cancelled all our planned maintenance so all of our staff can focus on fixing these as soon as possible,” the spokesperson said.
“There are still likely to be customers who remain without power overnight, however. We encourage those affected to follow us on our website or social media to check progress.”
Morgan Pumpa from the Bureau of Meteorology said another warning was issued for the Illawarra region this morning.
She said due to the arrival of a number of cold fronts there were likely to be strong gusts of wind all day Wednesday and into Thursday, even as average wind speeds eased.
“All of today averages will remain up to 60 km/h, with individual gusts of 80-90 km/h,” she said.
“There’s unlikely to be a warning tomorrow but we’re still likely to see gusts of up to 40 km/h into Thursday and even Friday before it dies down to light winds over the weekend.”
If you’ve been shivering despite temperatures remaining in the teens, you’re not alone.
Morgan said a combination of cold winds – some bringing a chill off the snowy mountains – cloud cover and the low-hanging winter sun all came together to make it feel much colder than the official air temperature.
“At the moment in Bellambi the air temperature is 15.4 degrees, but it feels like 3.4 degrees,” she said.
“That’s what you’ll feel when you step outside, and tomorrow’s feels like temperature will be a high of seven degrees, even though it’s a top of 15 or 16, so take care to stay warm and out of the wind.”
