Sydney -- Sydney's largest city was warned Monday to prepare for evacuation or to leave their homes as it faces its fourth and most severe round of flooding in less that a year. The city, which is home to 5 million people, was hit with torrential rains that caused waterways and dams to burst their banks. This led to a flood emergency. Murray Watt, Emergency Management Minister, stated that "the latest information that we have is that there's an extremely good chance that flooding will be worse than any other floods that these areas had in 18 months." Watt said that flooding could affect areas that were not affected by the floods of March last year, March next year, and April.
Dominic Perrottet, Premier of New South Wales, stated that 32,000 people were affected by evacuation orders.
Perrottet stated that you would expect that this number will increase over the course a week. Many flood rescues were performed Sunday night and Monday morning by emergency services, and hundreds of people are still calling for assistance.
Jane Golding, Australia's Bureau of Meteorology manager, said that some areas between Newcastle and Sydney, north of Sydney and Wollongong south of Sydney, had received more rain than usual in the past 24 hours. Some areas had received more that 59 inches. These totals are close to the average annual rainfall in coastal New South Wales.
Golding stated that the system that generated this weather shows signs that it will ease tomorrow but that rain is expected to continue throughout the day. She said that rain was predicted across New South Wales's coast, including Sydney this week. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, Sydney could see up to 4.7 inches of rain on Monday. The flood danger was greatest along the Hawkesbury River in Sydney's northwest and the Nepean River to the west. Monday afternoon, the bureau reported flooding at Wallacia and Menangle in Nepean on Sydney's southwest edge. Major flooding also took place at the Hawkesbury and North Richmond, Sydney's northwest edges. According to a bureau statement, flooding was expected in the Hawkesbury communities Windsor and Lower Portland on Monday afternoon and Wisemans Ferry Tuesday. Carlene York, Commissioner of State Emergency Services, stated that strong winds caused trees to fall and block roads. She discouraged unnecessary travel.
A cargo ship carrying 21 crew lost power off the New South Wales coast on Monday after it left Wollongong port. The ship was an anchor near the coast, and tugboats were ready to pull it into safer open waters.
John Finch, a port official, said that engineers are onboard the ship to repair the engine. "Unfortunately, unfortunately, we just happen be in some terrible conditions at the moment," John Finch said. He described 26-foot swells, winds blowing at 34 mph, and other details.
Bad weather forced the abandonment of an earlier plan to fly the Portland Bay cargo ship crew to safety.
Residents of a riverside community south of Sydney were suffering from repeated flooding, according to Mayor Theresa Fedeli. Homes and businesses were inundated over Sunday night by the Nepean River.
It's absolutely devastating. Fedeli stated that they keep repeating the words "devastating, but not again".
"I just keep saying it... 'We have to be strong, and we will get through it.' She said that it was really hitting home for many people, but she also added.
Perrottet stated that the government and communities must adapt to major flooding, which is becoming more frequent in Australia's most populous state.
These events are increasing in frequency across Sydney," Perrottet said. Perrottet stated that governments must adapt to the changing environment in which they find themselves.
