An entire month's worth of rain fell in 90 minutes as a freak storm hit Sydney on Wednesday.
One person was killed and several injured as flooding brought the city to its knees.
At daybreak the heavens opened for a deluge not seen in 34 years, with 91 millimetres of rain in 90 minutes - more than what falls in a normal month.
- Giant NSW dust storm may be headed to New Zealand
- Strong winds cause chaos at Sydney Airport
- Amazing photos of Uluru taken during massive thunderstorm
Sydney's no stranger to storms in spring, but this was the worst police have seen.
"We've had storm events before in New South Wales, we've had storm events in Sydney before, but not this widespread and not over this continuing period of time," said assistant commissioner Michael Corboy.
Trees started falling across the city, one striking a police officer and breaking her leg.
It didn't take long for the storm to turn fatal, with one person killed in a two-car smash.
As the Paramatta River burst its banks, roads began to resemble rivers.
"I've been living here two years now, this is the first time I've seen the water crossing the bridge like this," said Annandale resident Ashok Kumar.
Despite being warned not to risk it, drivers pushed through on their morning commute. Some crashed and others were stranded as waterlogged engines simply stopped.
"Mine stopped and I couldn't get it going again," a local man told Newshub.
"It's about a foot, foot-and-a-half deep, and by the time I got out of the car it was like a submarine."
As the city's train stations turned to storm water drains, passengers waded to school and work.
It was the city's wettest November day since 1984, and the rain isn't over yet.
Newshub.
