Rain finally easing but NSW floods go on

Parts of NSW hit with devastating flooding a year ago are in for even worse this time around as the state’s flood disaster continues.

Western Sydney’s Hawkesbury-Nepean catchment was being watched closely on Tuesday after torrential rain deluged Sydney, with multiple areas near the rivers experiencing major flooding.

The severity of the flooding would depend on how much more rain the area experienced overnight, the Bureau of Meteorology’s Dean Narramore said on Tuesday.

“But there is some good news,” he said, with a low pressure system that has been creating havoc in multiple states for more than a week moving south off the coast and expected to ease.

As the rain ends, strong winds will follow, bringing further danger by threatening to topple trees and down powerlines.

Soil saturated by more than two weeks of consistent downpours increases the risk of trees being blown over by strong winds, Mr Narramore said.

About 4500 homes and businesses lost power in Shoalhaven, the Illawarra and Southern Highlands on Tuesday afternoon as storms downed trees and powerlines.

Endeavour Energy said about 1700 homes and businesses near flooding rivers in western Sydney were also without power on Tuesday night, and a further 300 were expected to lose power overnight.

The anticipated emergence of the sun on Thursday will not be the end of the risk, with many rivers likely to continue delivering major flooding until peaks subside.

Conditions worse than those of 2021 were already occurring on Tuesday afternoon in western Sydney on the Upper Nepean River at Menangle, and the Hawkesbury River at Lower Portland and Wisemans Ferry.

Levels higher than last year’s were also occurring at North Richmond, Windsor and Sackville, the NSW State Emergency Service said in a statement on Tuesday night.

“Rapid rises have been observed at Windsor where the river level has exceeded the March 2021 event and is likely to reach levels just below the March 1978 event on Wednesday,” it said.

The SES said major flooding was happening along the Colo River and caravan parks along the river and on the lower Hawkesbury may be affected by rising waters.

In the Hunter region, Bulga southwest of Singleton could see worse floods than last year on Wednesday morning, with major flooding likely to reach Singleton as well.

Several areas around the town were warned on Tuesday they needed to prepare to evacuate.

The death toll from flooding in NSW in recent weeks increased to eight on Tuesday with the discovery of two bodies, hundreds of metres from where a car had previously been found in a stormwater canal at Wentworthville in Sydney’s west.

In the Northern Rivers, a fifth flood-recovery centre is set to open on Wednesday at Casino, joining others already operating at Mullumbimby, Murwillumbah, Kyogle and Lismore.

Deputy Premier Paul Toole said the centres house numerous government agencies to help support flood victims.

“They will be a one-stop-shop and they are going to be continually rolled out … to ensure that these communities have got all the support that they need,” Mr Toole said.

Australian Defence Force members will also be stationed at the centres, and 1300 personnel were due in the Northern Rivers by the end of the day on Tuesday.

Mr Toole repeated a call for more ADF assistance, to get “more sets of hands on the ground supporting these communities that need it right now”.

Rain finally easing but NSW floods go on
Independent Information