Deluge in Blue Mountains stops city; Natural Disaster Area declared

The seemingly never ending rain bomb wreaked havoc on Mountains trains and roads over the weekend and into this week. Commuters were forced onto buses as the rail line was shut between Springwood and Lithgow after two landslides - one in Katoomba, the other at Zig Zag - on Monday.

At one stage the highway was cut off by floodwaters at Valley Heights, causing long delays.

A NSW Transport spokeswoman said two shuttle trains started running back and forward between Penrith and Springwood late on Monday. Commuters were advised to allow extra time and avoid unnecessary travel.

"Impacts will continue through the rest of the week as we undertake detailed inspections to ensure rail network remains safe for trains and customers," she said, adding that "buses are expected to replace services between Springwood and Lithgow at least till Friday".

Emergency services were on the scene of the major landslide at Katoomba on Monday caused by the intense rainfall.

"Fire crews put exclusion zones around Gang Gang Street, as the area is unstable," a Fire and Rescue spokesperson said. "The nearby rail line is also in danger and RailCorp has closed the line in both directions until engineers can assess the damage. Council is assisting along with NSW Police."

The deluge has seen 420mm of rain in Katoomba in just the first week of March. This is more than double the month's average of 172mm and comes on top of 845mm that has fallen since November.

The Blue Mountains has now been declared a Natural Disaster Area. Council is urging residents to minimise movement around the city.

"This is the third major storm and flood event we've experienced in as many years, and it is taking its toll on our natural environment, our infrastructure, and on our community," said Blue Mounains mayor Mark Greenhill. "Being added to the Natural Disaster Areas list is a good thing. It opens doors to resources and support mechanisms that will be vital to managing the crisis, and in the clean up to follow."

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Blue Mountains SES unit commander Inspector John Hughes said they received 192 calls for help - several were for landslips, mostly around Katoomba.

"In my 40 years of SES, this has been the far wettest event I have known for the Blue Mountains."

At Mt Victoria, the road has been partially closed near Fairy Bower Road since Friday because of damage to the bridge over the railway line. Only the west-bound lane is open and traffic is being regulated with stop/go signs.

The NSW regional transport and roads minister, Sam Farraway, said urgent repair work was carried out on Sunday night and permanent repairs will be done over coming weeks.

Record breaking rains has seen the Blackheath Library shut due to significant water damage. A large number of outdoor works including mowing, sportsground maintenance, park works and burials are on hold.

"Domestic waste collections are happening as normal. If your street is closed, please leave your bins out and our trucks will return as soon as possible," council said.

"The damage across the LGA from the storms and flooding is significant, and resources will be stretched beyond capacity to get things back to working order and safe," council said.

Ten homes in Sun Valley lost power at 10am on March 2 when a fallen tree took out power lines in heavy rain. Firefighters from Springwood Fire and Rescue attended at Sun Valley Rd making the area safe. Endeavour Energy restored power that night.

On Monday Megalong Public School was closed. Last Thursday Glenbrook Public was closed for a day due to flooding. Nepean Performing and Creative Arts High School at Emu Plains was closed that same day and remained shut Monday. Updates at education.nsw.gov.au/public-schools/school-safety.

The huge dump of rain has continued a pattern which began in November, when 280mm fell at the Mount Boyce weather station, well over the monthly average of 105mm. The wet carried on through summer: December 129mm (compared with average of 86), January 222mm (average 121) and February 214 (average 142). It was also wet, with 55 wet days out of a 90-day summer.

February had just eight days without rain, January 11 and December was the sunniest with 16 dry days. But March looks set to be a record-breaker. The average rainfall (of 134mm) was surpassed within the first three days and the whole month's average more than doubled in the first week. It has rained every day, and sometimes all day, since February 19.

Summer was not only wet but also cool, particularly January, when the average temperature was 22.7, well below the average of 24.3, and more so in February, which was two degrees cooler than average, recording 20.9 for the month, compared with the long-term mark of 22.9.

Residents have taken to social media to post pictures of their backyard creeks. The good news is the latest Bureau of Meteorology forecast predicts only tiny rainfalls, up to 6mm, for the next five days. If you require assistance in a storm, contact the SES on 132 500.