With a wild weather event battering much of New South Wales, it was all eyes on the news last night.
Seven took out top spot with a total TV national reach of 2,138,000 and a national average of 1,427,000. Nine saw that reach and matched it perfectly, but fell just short on engaged viewers with a national average of 1,381,000.
Viewers stayed glued to news coverage as a “bomb cyclone” hammered coastal NSW, bringing down trees, cutting power to thousands and prompting evacuation orders. The intense low-pressure system delivered destructive winds up to 90km/h across Sydney, with a secondary front expected to bring more damaging gusts and heavy surf overnight.
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While the rain began to ease, flood warnings remained in effect for key river systems, and WaterNSW flagged a likely moderate spill from Warragamba Dam. Power was gradually being restored, but more than 3,000 homes remained without electricity as of late Wednesday. The SES responded to over 3,400 incidents across the state, and travel disruptions were expected to impact commuters into Thursday morning.
The severity and unpredictability of the storm kept audiences glued to live updates and broadcasts.
On 10, it was MasterChef that did the numbers, with a total TV national reach of just over 1 million and a national average of 608,000. The top nine contestants competed in two rounds for a chance to win immunity.