Storm pummels Western Australia with warning of weather to intensify

A storm has hit Western Australia, sending trampolines and sheds flying and causing flash flooding and power outages.

And the Bureau of Meteorology warns the weather is set to get worse.

In Mandurah, south of Perth, a neighbour’s shed collapsed into a family’s backyard swimming pool.

“It came over that side, over the fence, and before we knew it we got a free house,” the owner said.

Further along, Dawn Crawford held on, fighting the wind to keep her fence from collapsing.

“I’ve been holding this here for an hour,” she said.

Flash flooding has forced Perth residents to get creative for a morning cup of coffee.

“We’ve had jellyfish, we’ve had ducks, and then we’ve had our regulars, which is great,” joked Rob Strahan of Bayswater Oarhouse.

High waves in Hillarys became a playground for surfers.

Some boats sank when the Swan River overflowed its banks.

SES crews were busy responding to more than 380 calls for help since 5pm on Saturday.

Power lines were down in several suburbs, leaving more than 28,000 Western Power customers without power.

“I was in bed and the kids came running in shouting that the power was out so I wasn’t too happy. I wanted to be able to watch the footy this afternoon,” said Beaconsfield man Steve Tonge.

A tree smashed a roof, narrowly escaping Brad Counsel and his dog.

“A gust of wind and then the tree came down,” he said.

The storm has already dropped more than 57.4 millimeters of rain in Capel, between Bunbury and Busselton, in the past 24 hours.

Cape Leeuwin, the southwesternmost point of the mainland, recorded wind gusts of 122 kilometers per hour.

Emergency services urged everyone in the state’s south-east to tie up loose objects before the full force hits.

Joey Rawson from the Bureau of Meteorology said the wild weather would be unusual.

“As we get further into the evening, this low pressure system is really going to intensify and it will bring conditions that we don’t see very often in south-west WA.”

Previous forecasts even predicted the risk of tornadoes