More than 18,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in Australia’s New South Wales as heavy rains and major flooding continue to inundate the state, causing some areas to resemble “inland seas.
“Rains have been impacting communities since Thursday but flooding intensified over the weekend, with images showing roads, trees, and houses completely submerged in floodwaters in some areas.
Up to 38 places across the state are regarded as natural disaster areas and 19 evacuation orders have been issued, with potentially more to come, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said in a news conference Monday.
Much of the flooding has hit the mid-north coast, from Hunter Valley near Sydney to Coffs Harbour, but severe weather warnings have also been extended to include districts on the state’s south coast for Tuesday as the rains are forecast to shift. Heavy rainfall is also developing inland in the north of the state Monday, while in the east, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology has warned of “life-threatening” extensive flooding and heavy rain.
A severe weather warning has also been issued for neighboring Queensland, with heavy rains likely bringing flash flooding to southern and western parts of the state.
The heavy rainfall that led to the overflowing of the dam highly impacted the floods happening and climatologists warn that it’s nowhere near the end of the floods. The floods come after the 2019 wildfires that affected Australia largely affecting and displacing thousands of families and animals.
