Cyclone cleanup underway in Australia

A “GUT-WRENCHING” clean-up was in full swing yesterday as floodwaters receded across parts of Australia, with fears the death toll could rise after a car was swept into a swollen river.

At least two people were confirmed killed after cyclone-fuelled rain and winds pummelled swathes of Queensland and New SouthWales over the past week, forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of people and causing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damage.

Six people are missing, including three who were feared dead yesterday after a car plunged into the Tweed River in northern New South Wales. A young girl managed to escape but three others – believed to be a mother and her two children – had not been found.

“A police operation is underway to recover the three occupants of a vehicle that entered the Tweed River, near Tumbulgum, this afternoon,” police said.

While the worst of the weather is over as Cyclone Debbie moved out to sea on Saturday, the daunting task facing those affected is just beginning with residents returning to ruined property.

New South Wales State Emergency Services Deputy Commissioner Mark Morrow said it would be a long haul for towns such as Lismore and Murwillum- bah that were inundated by floods.

“The mud, combination of chemicals, raw sewage, paint which gets into everything. Two to three metres above floor level. Nothing escaped this. It was a very, very big flood,” he said.

Many of those who fled the area have begun heading back, with Morrow warning “it won’t be pleasant”.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said seeing the damage up close was heartbreaking, as he toured Lismore.

“Seeing it first-hand and the impact, treasured possessions, all of a life’s work, all of the assets of a business flung out onto the pavement – that is gut-wrenching stuff,” he said.