Australia’s south-east region witnessed heavy rain recently, causing flash floods and cutting off its citizens’ access to some inland towns. The country’s top authorities have issued warnings for fresh evacuations for thousands of residents in rural areas.
The latest flash floods are Australia’s fourth major flooding this year, which saw erratic weather conditions strike several parts of the north-east Victoria and south-west New South Wales almost overnight. The scenario caused riverbanks to burst and inflict more agony on residents.
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese took to Twitter to warn citizens that the flash flooding was ‘creating dangerous conditions’ in the country. However, Albanese also assured residents that the central government was collaborating with the states to develop robust rescue and rehabilitation plans.
The flash floods in rural New South Wales submerged its bridges, roads, and farms. Furthermore, residents of Eugowra, a small town having a population of 800, have been asked to move to higher grounds after officials observed that evacuations were an unsafe option due to flash floods.
Molong, which is situated about 300 km (186 miles) northwest of Sydney and has a population of over 2,000, was one of the many towns that suffered from heavy flooding. Heavy objects like caravans and shipping containers getting stuck on the highway made it harder for emergency teams to reach flooded areas like Molong, claimed Mayor Kevin Beatty.
Australia’s east coast is also seeing an increase in its annual rainfall for a rare third consecutive year due to the La Nina weather phenomenon.
More than 100 flood warnings have been issued across New South Wales, while 84 warnings are in place in Victoria after data from the weather bureau indicated that some areas had received over a month’s worth of rain in 24 hours.
In addition to this, the state of South Australia was a victim of thunderstorms and heavy rains during the weekend, with several schools being forced to close and thousands of households still living without electricity.
Source credit: https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/australianz/flash-floods-in-australias-south-east-cut-off-inland-towns