Home Australia Ferries are cancelled, a car is crushed and 40,000 homes are left without power: Week of wild weather is declared a national disaster as Sydney is lashed by fierce winds and storms

Ferries are cancelled, a car is crushed and 40,000 homes are left without power: Week of wild weather is declared a national disaster as Sydney is lashed by fierce winds and storms

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Chilling video taken on the iconic Manly ferry on Friday showed the ship being battered by waves as it crossed Sydney Heads (pictured).

Video captured the wild moment ferry passengers were swept away by monster waves as the Manly Ferry braved giant waves in Sydney Harbour.

Sydney’s week of wild weather has been officially declared a national disaster, with people and a car crushed by a fallen tree and thousands of people left without power.

Chilling video captured on the iconic Manly Ferry showed the ship tearing through waves on Friday as it passed heads in Sydney.

The decks were covered by waves of sea water, and two passengers were knocked down and carried away by one of the waves.

Manly Drone photographer also filmed the ferry in action on Friday morning, pitching with the waves as passengers desperately clung to the railings.

In the end, even the stalwart Manly service had to be grounded for the afternoon, along with services from Mosman Bay, Blackwattle Bay and Taronga Zoo.

Swells of up to five meters were reported on Manly, Coogee and Bondi beaches.

Thousands of Sydney residents were also left without power due to strong winds.

Chilling video taken on the iconic Manly ferry on Friday showed the ship being battered by waves as it crossed Sydney Heads (pictured).

Two passengers were knocked down when the decks filled with seawater (pictured)

Two passengers were knocked down when the decks filled with seawater (pictured)

Passengers were seen getting ready as the monster waves rolled in (pictured)

Passengers were seen getting ready as the monster waves rolled in (pictured)

Passengers clung to the railings as the ferry crossed Sydney Harbour.

Passengers clung to the railings as the ferry crossed Sydney Harbour.

Wind gusts of up to 100km/h throughout the week cut power to more than 100,000 Sydney customers, and 40,000 were still without power on Saturday morning, Ausgrid said.

A further 12,000 customers were left without power in Newcastle and the Hunter regions, along with 8,000 in Port Stephens.

The New South Wales State Emergency Service received 2,825 calls for help on Friday night, including four flood rescues.

Warnings are in place for communities and campers northwest of Newcastle, downstream of Chichester Dam.

“We currently have some communities and some places that are becoming isolated, and the warnings reflect that, and we are very closely engaged with local communities,” SES Commissioner Michael Wassing told reporters on Saturday.

“Most of our other calls are associated with major storm impacts in the Sydney area, particularly northern Sydney.”

On Friday afternoon, at least two people were injured when a large fig tree in Hyde Park crashed to the ground along a path and on a busy street.

Two people who suffered minor injuries were transported to nearby St Vincent’s Hospital for treatment, a NSW Ambulance spokesperson said.

Photos also showed a car crushed by a tree in Kingsgrove, in Sydney's south.

Photos also showed a car crushed by a tree in Kingsgrove, in Sydney’s south.

The tree was uprooted with such force that it displaced the pavement of the path

The tree was uprooted with such force that it displaced the pavement of the path

On Friday afternoon, at least two people were injured when a large fig tree in Hyde Park crashed to the ground across a footpath and onto a busy street (pictured).

On Friday afternoon, at least two people were injured when a large fig tree in Hyde Park crashed to the ground across a footpath and onto a busy street (pictured).

Photos also showed a car crushed by a tree on Homer St in Kingsgove, south of Sydney.

The tree was uprooted with such force that it dislodged the pavement of the trail.

And earlier in the week, a man in his 80s was killed when a tree fell on his car overnight in the state’s central west.

Federal Emergency Management Minister Jenny McAllister declared the wild weather a natural disaster in Maitland, Port Stephens and the Snowy Valleys, with disaster payments for affected families and businesses.

“The assistance activated today will ensure communities can access essential supplies and accommodation and ensure councils can begin clean-up and repairs,” Minister McAllister said.

“This is a time when people need to think about their own risks and listen to advice.”

According to the Bureau of Meteorology, heavy rain and damaging winds will ease on Saturday afternoon.

Rainfall of up to 120mm could fall in alpine areas of New South Wales.

Hazardous surf warnings remain in place for the Sydney and Illawarra coasts.

In Western Australia, a tropical low is likely from the northern Pilbara, with a high chance of developing into a tropical cyclone.

Damaging winds are possible in coastal and island communities between De Gray and Dampier from early Sunday morning, extending to Exmouth on Sunday night.

While the expected cyclone will move out to sea before developing, large waves could cause minor flooding between De Gray and Exmouth.

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