Evacuations continued in Sydney on Wednesday as river levels remained dangerously high, despite the rain finally easing. Four days of torrential rain in Australia’s largest city resulted in its third significant flooding episode this year.
Satellite images showed that the storm system has moved away from Sydney, but the risk of flooding is still present.
More than 85,000 people in New South Wales, the majority living in Sydney’s western suburbs, were asked to evacuate or warned that they could soon be asked to do so, according to authorities.
“This still remains a dangerous situation, and we need to respond appropriately,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters during a visit to Windsor, a suburb of Sydney.
The La Niña phenomenon, which is generally associated with more rainfall, has affected Australia’s east coast weather for two years.
According to meteorologists, La Niña ended in June, but there is a 50% chance that it will recur later this year.
The severe system of low pressure off the east coast went to the center of New South Wales’ 186-mile-long north coast, where the meteorological service forecast six hours of rainfall totaling more than 8 inches of rain in certain places.
Torrential rains that began on Saturday have poured water into river catchments around Sydney that were already nearly full before the recent downpour. Authorities warned that the floods might linger until the beginning of next week as a result.
The Australian Rail Track Corp was forced to close the vital rail network bringing coal to the Port of Newcastle, the largest coal export harbor in the world, late on Tuesday due to rain and flooding. However, the operator stated it intended to reopen the line within 48 hours.
Glencore, the leading coal producer in Australia, stated that the weather had some “short-term impacts” on its operations in the Hunter region of New South Wales but did not provide further detail.