The rains flooded communities on Thursday, but parts of the east coast went into crisis on Saturday as a major dam overflowed, adding to swollen rivers and causing flash floods.
NSW and the federal government have signed 16 declarations of natural disasters in areas along the central and mid-northern coast, from Hunter Valley near Sydney to Coff Harbor, NSW Emergency Services Minister David Elliott said on Sunday.
No deaths have been reported yet – but, Elliott warned, “we are getting closer and closer to the inevitable fatality”.
“We can’t say this enough: don’t put yourself in danger, don’t put the agencies that are there to help you in case of flood rescue,” he said.
Some families were forced to evacuate at midnight as the rivers rose to dangerous levels, and another 4,000 people – mostly in the Hawkesbury area – may have to evacuate on Sunday, Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian told the conference of press.
“This is not what we have seen since the 1960s,” Berejiklian said. In parts of the state that have been hit hardest, this is a once-a-century event; In other regions, such as the Hawkesbury area, it is a “50-year-old” event, she said.
As of Thursday, the State Emergency Service (SES) responded to 7,000 calls for assistance and carried out more than 750 flood rescues. Thousands of emergency workers and volunteers are still on the ground, helping trapped residents.
Berejiklian urged residents to follow local guidelines, stay off-road and take evacuation orders into account, if necessary – even for those living in flood-prone areas who may have experienced flooding before. “It’s different,” she warned. “What we’re going through is different from what you’ve been through for the last 50 years. So please take it seriously.”
Authorities do not yet know how many homes or infrastructure have been lost, but “the damage is substantial,” she said.
The declaration of natural disaster could be further extended to the coast if the damage increases, Elliott said. The statement allows those affected to receive financial assistance, including recovery of damage to housing, subsidies for livestock or agriculture affected and low or zero interest loans.
Heavy rains are expected to continue next week, with a rainstorm forecast to move across the state from the west, bringing significant rainfall to the northern inland and northwestern slopes, said Agata Imielska of the Bureau of Meteorology. The hardest hit areas could see rain more than four times the monthly average in March, falling in just two days.
Wednesday will be the first day of any delay, with rain expected to light up in the showers.