Parts of New South Wales have been lashed by dangerous storms, which caused flash flooding in the Central West region.
Key points:
- The storm in Orange was intense but extremely localised
- The BOM says heavy rain, hail and wind are threatening other areas
- The SES is urging people to stay off roads
Parks and roads are waterlogged in Orange, where water was lapping at the edge of some homes near a stormwater drain.
The State Emergency Service has received more than 20 calls for help in the area since 4pm, mostly involving fallen trees and water leaking through roofs.
Powerlines have been damaged and crews are working to restore electricity to about 250 homes and businesses north of Orange, including Summer Hill Creek and Ophir.
Some businesses have been partially flooded.
The Bureau of Meteorology said 41 millimetres had been recorded at Kite Street, in the centre of the city.
Forecaster Jonathan How said the downpour was very localised and that less than 1mm had been recorded at the airport, about 15 kilometres away.
The majority of the stormwater has made its way down the city's drainage systems.
But Mr How said the threat posed by "quite severe thunderstorms" had not passed.
"There is still a risk of seeing some locally heavy falls as well as hail and damaging winds through the afternoon," he said.
The weather system is expected to keep tracking north, towards Dubbo and Narromine.
A severe thunderstorm warning is in place across the Central Tablelands and parts of the Southern Tablelands, Central West Slopes and Plains, South West Slopes and Hunter districts.
Some areas could be affected by giant hail, intense rain and powerful wind.
Other areas likely to be badly affected include Mudgee, Bathurst, Dubbo, Parkes and Wellington.
The SES is urging people to stay off the roads over the coming hours.
"If you don't have to do the journey, don't go on the journey," Central West acting superintendent Lukas Torr said.
In a statement, Essential Energy said it had "restored power to 247 customers in Summer Hill Cree, Ophir, Lower Lewis Ponds and surrounding areas" after storm activity shortly before 3pm.
A lightning strike was found to be the cause of the outage.
About 100 customers in Orange are still affected by network disruptions.