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A deluge of rain on Thursday morning saw flooding in Australia reach the New South Wales capital of Sydney, bringing home to city residents the hardship facing rural parts of the state. Several major Sydney roads were closed, some train stations were flooded, power was reportedly cut to around 300 homes and flights were delayed as torrential rain hit the state capital early Thursday morning. The Bureau of Meteorology said Thursday that 116 millimeters of rain fell in Sydney over 24 hours, with rainfall exceeding that amount in some areas of the city. The downpour in Sydney followed days of heavy rain in other parts of the state, as well the neighboring state of Victoria. The month of March already appears likely to go down in history books as one of the wettest on record for the region. Towns in New South Wales, particularly in the southeast of the state, have been battling rising water, which has already covered swathes of land. Although rain and water levels are set to ease up in Sydney later Thursday, flood misery is unlikely to abate as quickly in the more rural areas, as water continues to move through river systems. Many waterways and dams are now at breaking point, according to reports. The Bureau of Meteorology currently has flood warnings in place for 24 rivers across New South Wales. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported Thursday that the town of Forbes in the center of the state has been cut in three by flooding from the Lachlan river, while Griffith and Wagga Wagga are notably under threat of inundation from rising waters. Hundreds of people have been evacuated in the southern part of the state. The news service also reported Prime Minister Julia Gillard as saying that there’s expected to be major economic damage for the region from the floods. This episode of flooding comes roughly a year after the northern part of New South Wales and the state of Queensland were engulfed in wet weather that saw the city of Brisbane hit by flooding for the first time in years.
- RSOE Edis
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