Emergency services rushed to the scene at in Abbotsford, on the Parramatta River in Sydney just after 2.45pm on Sunday where they found man struggling to stay afloat.
Thousands of residents across NSW have been told to evacuate their homes as the state is smashed with a heavy deluge meteorologists warn will intensify further.
Thousands of Australians have been ordered to evacuate their homes in Sydney as torrential rain batters the country's largest city and floodwaters inundate its outskirts.