Big waves hit the east coast of Australia on Saturday, hitting homes and engulfing Sydney’s famous Bondi Beach.
Dangerous wave alerts have been issued across most of the NSW coast, where strong winds are causing threatening waves.
In a video clip, a five-meter-high swell of tidal waters rushes to doorsteps, and at Avoca Beach, a 90-minute drive north of Sydney, onlookers flee the gushing waters.
Peter Evans, of New South Wales emergency services, told AFP that crews were looking after many homes in the area where waves entered the properties, but conditions were deteriorating.
“Hopefully the worst is over and we don’t have tonight or tomorrow what we had this morning and night,” he said.
Clear weather helped the teams, he added, but after months of heavy rain, water is still seeping into the watershed.
Sea conditions are still very difficult.”
In Sydney, the famous Bondi Beach has disappeared as waves crash over boardwalks and spill onto a nearby road.
The National Weather Service issued a warning throughout the weekend of dangerous waves and strong winds from the north coast of New South Wales to the Victoria border.
Eastern Australia has seen several extreme weather events in recent weeks, helped by La Nina and climate change.
Bad weather and record flooding have killed at least 22 people since early February.
