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Sydney Storm Clean-Up Continues As Social Media Showcases Damage Done

Sydney Storm Clean-Up Continues As Thousands Of Homes Still Without Power
Fairfax

While 5,000 homes still remain without power, more than 500 people are on the ground helping clean-up the damage from the Sydney storm.

The city and surrounding suburbs were hit with heavy rain and winds reaching 120 kilometres per hour on Thursday.

At least 80,000 homes were left without power and heavy rain increased the damage to homes overnight.

The NSW SES have received more than 2900 calls for assistance following the storm which killed one man in Emu Plains after a tree crushed his car on the Great Western Highway.

Moustafa Noureddine looks at his family home that was damaged by a fallen tree in Bankstown

A NSW SES spokesman told The Huffington Post Australia 45 percent of call-outs have been completed.

“We have over 400 volunteers on the field with additional support from the Rural Fire Service and Fire and Rescue,” Phil Campbell, the Media and Communications Manager for NSW SES said.

“We are bringing in additional SES volunteers to help out over the weekend and we’re hoping to have the majority of requests completed by Sunday."

The worst affected areas remain in western Sydney suburbs Penrith, Mt Druitt and Blacktown, while south west Sydney suburbs Bankstown and Sutherland are still recovering.

A house in the Sydney suburb of Rooty Hill was seriously damaged after a tree fell due to a storm.

A damaged shopfront on the Princes Highway, near Rockdale.

“We are seeing many large trees brought down with those wind gusts of 120 kilometres. Some have been very significant, requiring people to leave their homes,” Campbell said.

Trees are taking up to six hours to be removed in some cases, with the most extreme requiring cranes and heavy machinery.

Photos of the damage dominated social media on Friday, while 5,000 homes still remain without power.

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