Central Maitland escapes peak of Hunter flood

The Bureau of Meteorology says floodwaters are now not expected to overtop the Maitland levee in the New South Wales Hunter Valley.

The State Emergency Service says while floodwaters in the Hunter River have not hit expected peak levels, it is still not safe for people to return to their homes.

The river was expected to reach 11.4 metres early this morning but has been stable at 10.7 metres for the past few hours.

Water has already inundated an estimated 100 low-lying properties on the fringe of Maitland.

Up to 4,000 people evacuated from central Maitland, South Maitland and Lorn have spent the night in evacuation shelters.

SES spokesman Steve Delaney says the flood threat is far from over.

"We actually have been sitting at 10.7 metres for the last several hours which indicates to us there is a lot of water in the river and it is not going away fast," he said.

"Even though central Maitland, south Maitland and Lorn where we evacuated people out of last night appear to be safe, while there is water over the spillways, it is not safe to return."

Newcastle

The SES says there are likely to be evacuations in some riverside suburbs of Newcastle later today as floodwaters move further down the Hunter River.

Spokesman Steve Delaney says the floodwaters are due to hit Newcastle later today, and residents along the river at Hexham and Wallsend are being warned to expect evacuations.

"There'll definitely be evacuations through Hexham, I think that's pretty well a given," he said.

"I don't make the final decision on that. That's made by our controllers on the advice of both the bureau and the local flooding experts.

"However it's highly likely there will be further evacuations as this water goes further downstream."

Police are also advising people to stay away from the Newcastle and Raymond Terrace area because of flood conditions.

With today's public holiday, Northern Region traffic coordinator Senior Sergeant Malcolm Reed says people will be safer and not get caught in traffic jams if they avoid the area.

"For people, as much as possible unless it's really necessary, to stay away from the Newcastle and Raymond Terrace area," he said.

"We are expecting flood waters into the Maitland area over the next number of days, and of course that will continue on to Raymond Terrace."

Blackouts

Around 75,000 homes in storm-affected areas of the state are still without electricity.

The blackout affects 30,000 homes in the Hunter Valley, 43,000 on the Central Coast and 2,000 in northern Sydney.

Energy Australia says crews will work throughout the night, but it may take some days before all power is restored.

Cityrail says train services across the Central Coast and Hunter regions have been severely affected by the storms.

Rail signalling equipment and electrical power supplies have been damaged and there has been a major embankment slip at Morisset.

Services between Wyong and Newcastle have been suspended with plans for a limited bus service to start on Tuesday.

Countrylink services to the North Coast and north-west have also been affected, with the Hunter line suspended indefinitely.

SES volunteers

A team of 24 ACT SES volunteers will be sent to the Hunter region this morning to help emergency services officials with the relief efforts after the storms.

About 20 volunteers were sent from Canberra to the Maitland region on Saturday, and are due to return to Canberra later today.

ACT Emergency Service chief officer Tony Graham says he received another formal request from New South Wales authorities for volunteers yesterday.

"It's been quite a tough task for them," he said.

"Initially they were conducting a fair amount of evacuations and then the railway station up in Maitland was under threat.

"They spent a fair amount of time doing some sand-bagging to try and ensure that the railway station wasn't damaged at all."