NSW warned to brace for storm season

Photo: Getty Images
Photo: Getty Images
Residents in the Australian state of New South Wales are being warned to brace for storm season as last year's season was the worst in years.

The warning comes as the National Roads and Motorists' Association (NRMA) released research revealing close to two thirds of the state's residents are worried climate change will make storms even more frequent and intense in the future.

The NRMA on Tuesday revealed that NSW had suffered through an extremely intense 2018-19 storm season, with 61% of all home claims made to the insurance company in that period coming from storm damage.

With the state's storm season typically running from October to March, NSW State Emergency Service acting commissioner Fatima Abbas encouraged residents to immediately prepare and protect their homes and loved ones.

"We have already seen how people have been impacted by severe storms, with the NSW SES responding to over 3500 jobs in the past four weeks," Ms Abbas said.

"In these recent storms, we have seen countless trees blown over and, in some cases, entire roofs have been blown off homes and businesses."

NRMA also said car insurance claims from storms and hail reached record highs in 2018-19, with 15% of claims relating to storm damage - almost triple the previous five-year high of 6% in 2016-17.

The data also revealed the state's top 10 storm-affected regions, with central northern Sydney - encompassing Hornsby and The Hills District - topping the list, followed by the Central Coast and Greater Western Sydney.

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