A small plane has slid from the tarmac in heavy rain in Sydney south on Tuesday, coming to a halt in the grass.
The plane was preparing to takeoff from at Bankstown Airport when the combination of strong winds and a wet tarmac caused it to bear sideways, Channel Nine reported.
After the incident, the pilot was seen exiting the plane and running to check on the front of it. Nobody is believed to have been hurt.
Bankstown Airport received 126 millimetres of rain on Tuesday – one of many areas in Sydney to be drenched in torrential downpours.
The Bureau of Meteorology said severe weather would shift northwards throughout the evening and overnight.
Earlier in the day, the NSW flood death toll rose to seven after two bodies were discovered by police divers in southwest Sydney.
Bodies of a man and woman have been found in Wentworthville, not far from where a car belonging to a mother and son was discovered in a stormwater canal in Sydney’s west.
Police were alerted around 8.20am that a female body had been discovered floating in Cooper’s Creek after a 7 News reporter and cameraman stumbled upon the location.
The reporter, Andrew Denney, described scenes of immense bravery from the police officers who scrambled out onto logs in the swollen creek to retrieve the body as it was repeatedly swept away by flood waters.
Police described the rapid progression of flooding in the area saying that the canal where the vehicle was found rose from ankle deep to above neck height in a matter of minutes.
The force of floodwaters led to the reinforcement of Polair helicopters and police divers to assist in the recovery.
During the search, police discovered a man’s body half a kilometre away from the woman’s body.
The identities of the bodies are yet to be formally confirmed, but were located less than 1.5 kilometres away from the car owned by missing woman, Hemalathasolhyr Satchithanantham.
The 67-year old mother was believed to be with her 34xjmtzyw-year old son, Bramooth at the time she went missing.
Police have been told that Bramooth has autism and is non-verbal.
Officers were called to Wentworthville about 4.30pm on Monday following reports a Mazda 3 was found in the Cooper Creek stormwater canal.
Personal possessions were found inside the vehicle.
“This is a timely and tragic reminder of the need to limit non-essential travel during these weather conditions,” Detective Superintendent Paul Devaney, Cumberland Police Area Command said.
He advised that if you must travel please turn your headlights on, slow down and drive to the conditions.
A crime scene has been set up at the end of Hopkins Street near Toongabbie Creek and officers from the Cumberland Police Area Command are investigating.
Police are appealing for anyone that may have information or dashcam footage of this incident to contact Crime Stoppers.
