More thunderstorms are forecast to hit Sydney and eastern NSW with showers and a wind change expected to help ease smoke from fires still burning around the state in the coming days.
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Active showers and thunderstorms were seen across the state on Sunday with the highest rainfall of nearly 61 millimetres recorded in Bourke in northern NSW, a Bureau of Meteorology spokeswoman told AAP on Sunday.
"More broadly across quite a lot of the west we've seen some areas reaching 20 to 30mm, although the rainfall has been hit and miss in some areas," the spokeswoman said.
In NSW's mid-north, a station in Carinda recorded 49.4mm and Girilambone recorded 42.2mm, while in the Riverina Griffith recorded 30.8mm.
In Sydney through to the Central Coast and the Hunter region, a combination of a wind change and rainfall are forecast to have a "very strong mitigating effect" on smoke caused by fires around the state, the BOM spokeswoman said.
Smoke is still present across areas of northeast NSW closer to fire activity which is expected to continue until at least Monday or Tuesday, when showers and storms as well as a wind change will mitigate the smoky conditions, she said.
Sydney and much of eastern NSW is expected to see continuation of thunderstorm activity on Monday.
NSW RFS Inspector Ben Shepherd told AAP the showers "will give us a little bit of reprieve from the fire dangers we've seen over the last few days".
The agency would have a clearer idea on Monday "about what got what and then where our risks are".
"We could see some very hot and windy conditions towards the end of next week," he said.
Insp Shepherd said the thunderstorms brought with them the possibility of lightning and more fires.
By Sunday afternoon there were still around 70 fires burning across NSW, at least half of which were uncontained.
A watch and act alert which was issued by the Rural Fire Service for a bushfire in Forster on Sunday afternoon was later downgraded to advice.
The far North Coast, North Coast, greater Hunter, Monaro alpine, New England, Northern Slopes and north western regions have been given a high fire danger rating for Monday.
The Department of Environment has given Sydney an air quality forecast of "good" for Monday after it reached "poor" earlier in the week.
Australian Associated Press
