Newcastle region weather: flash-flooding risk as intense rainfall set to batter the Hunter

Local State Emergency Services (SES) crews are on standby with weather conditions expected to take a turn for the worse on Tuesday.

A minor to moderate flood watch has been issued for the Wollombi Brook and lower Hunter River and there's a chance communities could be isolated by rising water, Metford SES spokesman Steven Lawrence said.

"We're expecting to see that rainfall intensify over the course of Tuesday and Wednesday and we will definitely see flash flooding because it's been so wet," he said.

"The rainfall rates will be quite intense, so we will see some isolation of communities that regularly get isolated by flood waters - we'll need to keep a close eye particularly on the Lower Hunter."

Parts of Newcastle and the Hunter could be hit with upwards of 25mm of rain and winds strong enough to whip up large surf and uproot trees.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Jordan Notara said residents can expect heavy bursts of rain through the day and into the evening.

"There is going to be a chance that we will see localised flash flooding all through Newcastle and other areas just from the fact that it doesn't drain away as easily," he said.

"We may see severe weather warnings issued later in the week for potential beach erosion due to large seas being pushed in, so we could see some impacts around parts of the Newcastle coastline from large seas as well."

Temperatures are expected to remain moderate, with a high of 23 predicted on Tuesday and remaining in the low-20s for most of the week.

Mr Lawrence reminded the public to plan trips ahead and to not drive through floodwaters under any circumstance.

"Don't risk driving through flood water, we've had a number of flood rescues over the last four weeks where we have luckily seen positive outcomes, but it could so easily go pear-shaped for the driver and the people doing the rescues," he said.

"We can see high rainfall levels throughout the next couple of weeks but there are no clear definitive clearing trends so we're going to see a lot of water lying around for quite some time so we need the community to continue to work with us to get through this period."

Tuesday and Wednesday are forecast to bring the worst of the wet weather, with conditions starting to clear from Sunday.

Members of the public can contact State Emergency Services for assistance in floods or storms on 13 25 00, or Triple Zero in a life-threatening emergency.

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