Heavy rains and possible flash flooding could hit Sydney over the next two days as a weather system battering Australia’s east coast slowly moves toward New South Wales, the country’s most populous state.
Sydney, home to more than 5 million people, and several neighboring regions could receive up to 150 millimeters (6 inches) of rain during a six-hour period Tuesday afternoon, according to the Bureau of Meteorology. Official data shows that Sydney experienced 138 mm of rainfall in March. The deluge began late last week and has killed nine people in Australia. Towns, roads, and bridges have been flooded in Queensland and New South Wales.
Dominic Perrottet, the Premier of New South Wales, called the wild weather an event that occurs once in a thousand years. He advised residents living in the south of the state to prepare to leave immediately if asked. ‘At the moment (the weather system) is focused on the north, but very quickly, as we are seeing in metropolitan Sydney now … it will move to the south,’ Perrottet said during a media briefing on Tuesday.
There have been reports that some people have spent the night on their rooftops in the northern New South Wales city of Lismore, which is experiencing its worst floods on record. Mayor Steve Krieg told Channel Seven that 400 rescues remain to be performed with nine people still missing.
For the second time in a row, Australia’s east coast has been dominated by a La Nina climate pattern, which is typically associated with higher rainfall. Australia’s third-largest city, Brisbane, received 80% of its annual rainfall over the last three days, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said on Tuesday.
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