On a clear, sunny afternoon at Ettalong Beach on the NSW Central Coast, a young man was struck by lightning that seemed to fall from nowhere, a reminder that the sky's violence does not always announce itself above the place where it lands. The bolt came from storms gathering at a distance, as lightning can travel many kilometres from its parent cloud, and it landed in the middle of a weekend when much of eastern Australia was being pushed around by heat, humidity and a restless southerly change. As forecasters braced for hail, gales and flash floods across the north-east and into Queensland,
Supercell thunderstorms, giant hail and destructive winds forecast for NSW as eastern states brace for volatile weather
A man in his 20s was struck by lightning while swimming at Ettalong Beach and was in critical but stable condition after CPR and hospital transfer.
The bolt seemed to come out of nowhere
Mark
Why does the lightning strike at Ettalong matter beyond the one man?
Mimi
Because it happened under a clear, sunny sky. Witnesses saw storms in the distance toward Gosford, but nothing overhead. Lightning can strike up to 30km from the centre of a storm cell.
Mark
So distance isn't the safety margin people think it is.
Mimi
Right. He was pulled out by other swimmers and given CPR until paramedics arrived. He's now critical but stable.
Luke
Worth being clear on what we know. Critical but stable is the hospital's description as of Sunday morning. Nothing in the reporting says what his prognosis is.
Mark
And the forecast for Sunday? How firm is it?
Mimi
Hail over 5cm and winds over 120km/h are possible in north-eastern NSW. Sarah Scully said a southerly change pushing up the coast could trigger supercells.
Luke
Notice the wording: possible, potential, likely. These are forecasts, not events. The bureau itself said it would issue more warnings as storms developed.
Mark
What about Monday's rain?
Mimi
A coastal trough is forming off the north coast near the Queensland border. The current estimate is 30mm to 70mm.
Luke
And Scully said that figure could be wrong. These troughs are notoriously hard to predict, and a small move closer to the coast can mean far more rain. That's the real uncertainty in this story.
El Pulso
- A young man was struck by lightning while swimming at Ettalong Beach, under a sky that looked perfectly clear.
- Fellow swimmers pulled him from the water and first responders kept him alive with CPR until paramedics arrived.
- Storms with hail above 5cm and winds beyond 120km/h are forecast to tear through north-eastern NSW on Sunday.
- A coastal trough off the northern NSW border could drop heavy rain and flash floods on Brisbane and the Gold Coast on Monday, and forecasters warn its path is hard to pin down.
- He remains in critical but stable condition, while the weather system driving the danger is still moving toward the coast.
On a clear, sunny afternoon at Ettalong Beach on the NSW Central Coast, a young man was struck by lightning that seemed to fall from nowhere, a reminder that the sky's violence does not always announce itself above the place where it lands. The bolt came from storms gathering at a distance, as lightning can travel many kilometres from its parent cloud, and it landed in the middle of a weekend when much of eastern Australia was being pushed around by heat, humidity and a restless southerly change. As forecasters braced for hail, gales and flash floods across the north-east and into Queensland, the episode stood as a quiet lesson in how nature's large systems reach into ordinary lives.
On Saturday afternoon at Ettalong Beach, a man in his twenties was swimming when lightning struck him. Witnesses saw storms far off toward Gosford, yet the sky above the beach was bright and clear, and the strike seemed to come from nowhere. Fellow swimmers got him out of the water, and first responders performed CPR until NSW Ambulance arrived. He was taken to Gosford hospital and later moved to Royal North Shore, where on Sunday he was described as critical but stable.
The strike was part of a wider day of storms that dumped heavy rain across northern and eastern NSW and much of Queensland, with winds reaching 98km/h at Goulburn. Meteorologists warned Sunday would bring more of the same, with the most dangerous storms in the north-east, capable of hail over 5cm and winds above 120km/h. A southerly change moving up the coast was the driver.
The threat was expected to shift on Monday into the northern rivers and south-east Queensland, including Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, bringing giant hail, destructive winds and possible life-threatening flash floods. Forecasters are also watching a developing coastal trough near the Queensland border, whose rainfall will depend on how close it sits to shore and how long it lingers. The bureau cautioned that such troughs are notoriously difficult to predict.
On Saturday afternoon at Ettalong Beach, on the NSW Central Coast, a man in his 20s was swimming when lightning struck him. Witnesses said storm activity was visible in the distance toward Gosford, but the sky over the beach was clear and sunny, and the bolt seemed to come out of nowhere. Fellow swimmers pulled him from the water. First responders gave him CPR until NSW Ambulance paramedics arrived.
He was taken to Gosford hospital in a serious condition and later transferred to Royal North Shore hospital. On Sunday morning a hospital spokesperson said he was in a critical but stable condition. Lightning can strike up to 30km from the centre of a storm cell, which helps explain how a bolt can land under a blue sky.
The strike came on a day of wide storm activity. Heavy rain fell across large parts of northern and eastern NSW and much of Queensland. Goulburn recorded winds of up to 98km/h, and the Coffs Harbour area received between 30mm and 50mm of rain.
The Bureau of Meteorology expected no easing on Sunday. Senior meteorologist Sarah Scully described it as likely to be another big storm day, with very dangerous and severe thunderstorms expected in north-eastern NSW. Those storms could produce hail more than 5cm in diameter and winds in excess of 120km/h. Scully said a southerly change pushing up the NSW coast was the driver, and a potential trigger for supercell, high-end thunderstorms.
A broader band of the state faced a lesser but still serious threat. Severe thunderstorms with 2cm hail, gusts above 90km/h, heavy rainfall and flash flooding were possible from inland parts of the ranges east of Sydney, north into south-east and central Queensland. Sydney was expected to get storms and rain, though likely less severe than further north, with a top of 23C. Brisbane was forecast showers and thunderstorms with a top of 31C. The bureau said it expected to issue more severe weather warnings through Sunday as the storms developed.
On Monday the risk of high-end severe thunderstorms was forecast to shift into the NSW northern rivers and south-eastern Queensland, including Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast. Again the potential was there for giant hail, destructive winds and intense rain that could cause life-threatening flash flooding. Scully attributed this to the trough pushing up the coast, combined with the very humid conditions eastern Australia had experienced over the previous few days.
Forecasters were also watching a coastal trough with a low-pressure system that appeared to be developing off the north coast of NSW near the Queensland border. Scully said rainfall totals depended on how close the trough sat to the coast and how long it lingered. For now the bureau expected only moderate totals of 30mm to 70mm on Monday, easing into Tuesday morning. But she cautioned that such troughs are notoriously hard to predict, and a small shift toward the coast can sometimes dump a great deal of rain.
Elsewhere the picture was calmer. Melbourne was expecting showers and 17C, Hobart a high chance of showers and 13C, and Adelaide cloud and a mild 20C. Canberra was forecast partly cloudy and 24C, Perth partly cloudy and 28C, and Darwin 34C with an afternoon storm. The coastal trough off northern NSW is the thing to watch into Monday and Tuesday.
Citas Notables
How much rainfall accumulates is highly dependent on how close that trough sits to the coast, and also how long it lingers there.— Sarah Scully, senior meteorologist, Bureau of Meteorology
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