text: The worst storm in a decade in NSW has killed three people, left 215,000 homes without power and caused commuter chaos with severe flash flooding but hasn't appeared to deter surfers chasing the perfect wave. As the light was fading on Monday, three men could be seen scaling huge walls of waves at Deadman's Point in Manly, Sydney. On Tuesday waves reached spectacular heights of 11.2 metres, according to the Manly Hydraulics Laboratory, but this one later in the day appears even larger. The photo, which was posted on the Sprout Daily Facebook page, was captioned: 'I didn't see a wave ridden but it was thrilling enough to see men scaled against these mountainous seas. You can just see someone on the shoulder of this monster.' Scroll down for video . 'You can just see someone on the shoulder of this monster': Three surfers attempted to scale a huge wave at Manly's Deadman's Point . Maitland Vale Road at Lambs Valley in the Hunter region, taken by a local named Cherie, was ripped up from the ground . A ute submerged in floodwaters at Stroud, a small country town one hour north of Newcastle, in New South Wales . A man attempts to dig his boat off the beach at Manly Cove in Sydney on 21 April . Lightning flashes in the night sky in Sydney during another night of severe weather . Some people ignored warnings from authorities to stay out of the water as wild storms lashed the eastern coast of Australia around Sydney, such as these two teenagers who took on the surf at swimming baths at Bronte Beach in Sydney . A staggering 312mm of rain fell in 24 hours in Dungog, in the Hunter region of New South Wales, where three elderly people were found dead - marking the heaviest rainfall the area has seen in 100 years. Four houses in the town were washed away in the raging murky storm waters while a horse was rescued from drowning by a woman in a tin boat. Bondi’s famous beach was forced to close after high winds blew large amounts of sand onto nearby roads and promenades. Screams were heard in video footage of commuters who tried to brave the ferry crossing from Manly to the city on one of the few ferries that tried to run before being forced to turn back. A car sits covered in sand in the car park next to the Bondi Beach promenade, which is covered in sand blown inland during heavy storms . Where there's normally a mass of people, all that there was on Bondi Beach on Tuesday afternoon was an eerie silence . Huge waves crash over swimming baths at Avalon Beach in Sydney on April 21 . A horse (left) is safe and well after being rescued from floodwaters at Torrywood, west of Dungog, in the Hunter region of New South Wales . Manly Dam is flooded due to extensive weather conditions which may now cancel out the weekend dawn Anzac memorial service . A surfer is knocked off his board by the big swell at Manly Beach in Sydney. People have been advised to stay well away from the surf and surf exposed areas due to dangerous beach conditions . Workers in the city were drenched by rainfall as umbrellas were torn from their hands and abandoned in gutters. Lines for delayed and packed buses snaked down wet streets as trains were cancelled due to flash flooding and obstructions on the tracks. Flights in and out of Sydney's domestic airport have also been affected with 45 minute delays forecast. Meanwhile, NSW residents woke to find trees on top of their homes and cars, with even major streets closed as the full toll of the storm’s destruction began to add up. SES deputy commissioner Steven Pearce said there was 'enormous damage' across the eastern seaboard of NSW, including Sydney and central and mid-north coastal communities. 'We have over 500 SES volunteers in the field ... hundreds of firefighters from the Rural Fire Service and Fire Rescue also assisting. Cars were stranded as drivers ignored warnings and took on floodwaters that covered roads, such as here at Raymond Terrace in the north of NSW . Cessnock Captain Brett Plumb, his crew and crews from Dungog and Minmi  assessing the damage in Dungog where four houses have been washed away . This photo shows just one of the many buildings damaged in Dungog. Crews estimate up to 80 homes have been severely damaged by flooding in the country town . A brick wall in a building in Narrabeen did not withstand the storm and crushed the cars below it . In Scotland Island in the north of Sydney, storm damaged boats were overturned in the harbour . A man runs past heavy seas as sand is blown by heavy winds inland at Sydney's Bondi Beach . A teenage boy skims on a puddle as big swell hits off Manly Beach in Sydney . The east coast low is one of the worst the state has experienced in the past two or three years, he said. There are flood watches on every major river system in the NSW Hunter and mid north coast area. 'Rainfall is anywhere between 100 and 200mm of rain in some areas,' Mr Pearce said. He told the ABC: 'The weather system did change very rapidly. 'This was an east coast low initially which are always historically very severe weather system however they come in and they go very quickly, this didn't. This has just stayed and tracked, again we have never seen these cyclonic winds last for 24 hours straight that's what's caused the majority of the damage.’ The beachside suburb of Manly was under threat from flooding on Tuesday night and authorities said they may be forced to open the sluice gates of the Manly Dam  to release pressure from rapidly rising water levels. SES issued an alert at that time advising that volunteers and local police were out telling residents in the Manly Dam area to pack essential items and prepare to leave their premises. A fishing boat washed ashore on Terrigal Beach, north of Sydney. The devastated owner said his insurance ran out three days ago . In Dungog the train tracks were damaged (left) and in Bondi, in Sydney, a flooded road caused a traffic jam (right) The streets of Rose Bay, in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, were flooded due to heavy rainfall . The Hunter Valley has been one of the worst-hit areas by the storm, this car crushed under the roof of a house is in the town of Blacksmiths . Shocking video shows a house being washed away in Dungog in the upper Hunter region, which has been smashed by 312mm of rain in 24 hours - the heaviest rainfall in 100 years . In Avalon on Sydney's Northern Beaches fallen trees and telegraph poles block roads and cause significant damage to property . State Emergency Service warn that hundreds of residents may have to evacuate their premises near Manly Dam . About 4000 people have been stranded on a cruise ship outside Sydney Heads, with waves off the coast of Sydney reaching up to 15m . Fallen trees, fallen power lines, and fallen trees on power lines: Narrabeen Fire Station reported on their call outs in the local area . Randwick Council shared this image of sand blown up off Coogee Beach, captioned: 'We've got a big clean up on our hands before Anzac Day' MP Bob Baldwin posted this photo of his house on social media. Like many houses in Sydney this one  fell foul of the severe weather . Ferry services have been cancelled at Parramatta (pictured) while services between Manly and Circular Quay were also stopped .
target: Photos from across the NSW coast show the devastation caused by the worst storm to smash the area in ten years .
  In the Hunter region of New South Wales a staggering 312mm of rain fell in 24 hours .
  In dramatic scenes, four houses in the town of Dungog were washed away in the raging floodwaters .
  Animals have been stranded by the floods with one horse rescued from drowning by a woman in a tin boat .
  Beaches including Bondi have been forced to close due to high winds .
  But surfers have braved the huge tidal surge despite grave warnings from authorities .