AUSSIES FLEE DELUGE
3 feet of rain in a day force 30,000 to evacuate Sydney area
More that 3 feet of rainfall in 24 hours caused flooding in parts of Australia, and more than 30,000 Sydney-area residents were told to make plans to leave their homes Monday as torrential rains continued to pound the area around the country’s largest city.
Up to 5 more inches of rain was expected as the area faced its fourth flood emergency in less than two years. High winds, rough seas and heavy rains overwhelming dams posed a threat to the city’s 5 million residents as a month’s worth of rain saturated the region over the weekend, authorities said.
“The latest information we have is that there’s a very good chance that the flooding will be worse than any of the other three floods that those areas had in the last 18 months,” Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said.
Areas that avoided flooding last March and April and again in early 2021 could be affected by the current storm, Watt added.
“The system that has been generating this weather does show signs that it will ease tomorrow, but throughout [Monday], expect more rain,” an official with Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology manager said.
An estimated 32,000 people were impacted by evacuation orders, said New South Wales state Premier Dominic Perrottet, who added he anticipates the number to increase during the week.
A cargo ship with 21 crew members lost power off the New South Wales coast Monday morning. Rescue workers planned to use tugboats to drag it away from the port and into open waters, where it would be safer.
Swells are reportedly topping 26 feet bolstered by 34 mph winds. Airlifting the ship’s crew to safety was ruled out due to the dangerous weather conditions.
Mayor Theresa Fedeli, of the Camden municipality southwest of Sydney, said Sunday night’s flooding was taking a toll on her communities’ residents and business operators.
“They just keep saying ‘devastating,’ ” she said. “‘Not again.’ ”
The mayor said government and citizens alike must learn to adapt to “the changing environment,” as flooding appears to be becoming more common. Heavy rainfall also pummeled the continent’s west coast in March 2021.
For now, it’s about riding out the current storm for Sydney and its neighboring towns.
“We’ve got to be strong, we will get through this,” Fedeli said. “But you know, deep down it’s really hitting home hard to a lot of people.”
The city of Sydney’s Twitter feed warns locals to avoid nonessential travel, particularly by train, where transportation will be “heavily impacted.”