Parts of Sydney's north evacuated amid major flood risk as more rain lashes the State

mode1 mode1 Mar 21, 2021 07:14 1253 0

Parts of Sydney's north evacuated amid major flood risk as more rain lashes the State

Dozens of people have been rescued from floodwaters, and residents in many low-lying communities of New South Wales have been ordered to leave their homes.

Police say hundredsof people have flocked to evacuation centres in areas north of the city of Sydney.

Parts of Sydney's north-west have been ordered to evacuate overnight amid a major flooding risk in low-lying areas of the Hawkesbury-Nepean River. The NSW State Emergency Service (SES) is ordering anyone in low lying areas of Agnes Banks, Pitt Town Bottoms, Pitt Town North, Cornwallis, Gronos Point on the Hawkesbury and low-lying areas of North Richmond to evacuate.

 

Major roads have been shut. Footage has emerged of a house being swept away.Warragamba dam in Sydney, the city's main water source, has begun to overflow for the first time since 2016, and WaterNSW warns others are also expected to spill over.

Over the past 24 hours the Sydney CBD and much of the metro recorded more than 100mm of rain. But the stand out was Kendall, south of Port Macquarie, which has recorded more than 700mm since Thursday.

The latest update from the Bureau of Meteorology confirms more rain in next few days.