SES Community Engagement Officer for the Mid North Coast, Steve Lawrence said that despite the somewhat wild weather, it was a relatively low impact storm.

“On Saturday we had three call outs for assistance in the area, one at Lighthouse Beach for a leaking roof, one at Telegraph Point for trees down and one at Kempsey for another leaking roof, so overall the requests for help came from heavy rain, but were of a relatively minor nature,” Mr Lawrence said.

“That said over 15mm of rain fell in half an hour, so it is a good reminder for people to make sure their homes are storm safe, and have an action plan for if things go down hill, because as we are coming into storm season, people need to be prepared,” he said.

Weatherzone meteorologist Tom Hough said the rain will be around for a few more days.

“The rest of Sunday (November 5) is expected to have showers with them continuing into Monday and later in the week,” Mr Hough said.

“It is also expected to warm up to 27 degrees on Monday (November 6) so with the addition of rain there will be a storm warning for the Hastings area, though that is expected not to last long, with temperatures falling to the low 20’s by Tuesday evening,” he said.

In the 24 hours ending lunchtime on November 5, the Port Macquarie airport had received 17mm of rain. 

“The low pressure system and associated troughs we are seeing at the moment are not uncommon for this time of year,” he said.

The rain in the Hastings over the weekend coincided with World Tsunami Awareness Day, and the SES are cautioning residents in the Mid North Coast to know what to do, in the event a tsunami alert is issued.

SES Community Engagement Officer for the Mid North Coast, Steve Lawrence said the day is all about ensuring residents know what to do if an emergency alert is issued.

“There are two kinds of tsunami threats that people need to be prepared for, a marine threat which is targeted at the foreshore and coast line, but there is also the land threat which, if were to happen, would see major inundation of coastal areas, and that is the threat we are really focusing on today being Tsunami Awareness Day,” Mr Lawrence said.

While the likelihood of a land-threat tsunami on the east coast of Australia is low, maps released by the SES show the areas people would have to evacuate from, and move to higher ground.

“If there is a threat of land inundation from a tsunami, people need to move to higher ground, at least ten metres above sea level or one kilometre away from the coast and rivers, which is important to remember in Port Macquarie given the canals around town,” he said.