East coast low to impact Sydney, northern beaches

Heavy rainfall which may lead to flash flooding is forecast to develop over parts of Sydney from tonight (Tuesday), the Bureau of Meteorology's warning states.

"Locally intense rainfall leading to dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding is possible with thunderstorms, with six-hourly rainfall totals up to 200mm possible," the BOM said.

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"Damaging wind gusts, with peak gusts in excess of 90km/h, may develop over parts of the coastal fringe in the warning area from Wednesday."

A severe weather warning for damaging surf and abnormally high tides is current for coastal areas in Sydney.

SES Warringah Pittwater Unit Commander Wayne Lyne said the water-logged ground may lead to trees falling over.

"They're talking high winds for the next few days, if that happens we're going to have a lot of trees fall over because it's so bloody wet," he said.

Northern Beaches Council CEO Ray Brownlee urged residents to prepare now.

"Council crews are continuing to clear drainage networks on local roads and all lagoon entrances - Narrabeen, Dee Why, Curl Curl and Manly - are opening and flowing well with the situation continually monitored," he said.

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"We are also lowering water levels in Manly Dam to increase the flood storage ahead of the forecast rain."

In preparation for the predicted wild weather and to deal with any local emergencies, council activated its Incident Management Team on Tuesday.

In preparation for the east coast low, sand has been dropped at two locations on the northern beaches:

Sandbags will be dropped down to the locations later this evening. BYO own shovel to fill bags

You can also fill shopping bags with dirt as an alternative.

The northern beaches has received more than triple the usual amount of rainfall for February, with 387 millimetres recorded at Terrey Hills. The mean rainfall for the month is 122.9mm.

Local SES crews received more than 100 emergency calls in the past week since heavy rain began, with trees crashing down, landslides, leaking roofs and flooding in homes and businesses.

"We've been to flooding issues and water not being able to get away quick enough from stormwater drains," Mr Lyne said.

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There were two landslides in Belrose, one on Morgan Road and the other on Haigh Avenue, which caused minor damage.

Volunteers at the SES Manly Unit said there were "an endless number of roof jobs" around Manly Vale and North Manly on Saturday. A spokesperson said that Community Bank Freshwater "has had constant flooding for days now".

They also offered advice if water is leaking onto your ceiling. "If a ceiling is filling up with water and sagging, punching a hole in it and having a large container ready underneath can stop the ceiling from caving in," the spokesperson said.

Mr Lyne urged people to clear out gutters on their rooftops before further rains, as this is the main cause of a leaking roof. He said people can also make their own sandbags by filling plastic supermarket shopping bags with dirt from their garden, and have them on standby in case they are needed.

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