One dead as torrential rain ravages Australian towns
"I'm very sorry for that man's passing. We should be bracing for more tough news over the next 24 hours," New South Wales Premier Chris Minns told ABC News.
More than 100 schools are closed on Thursday, while thousands of properties remain without power, authorities said.
A slow-moving coastal trough has dumped about four months of rain over the past two days, cutting off entire towns and stranding residents on roofs and the second storeys of their homes, as rescuers struggled to access the area by boat or air.
Minns apologised to people who had to wait for several hours for rescue crews, but assured efforts had been ramped up with 2500 emergency services personnel deployed on site.
Television video showed a woman winched to a helicopter from a flooded property. — Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) May 21, 2025
Australia's Bureau of Meteorology forecast that some areas could receive up to 300mm of rain through Friday, triggering life-threatening flash flooding, before the weather system is expected to weaken and track south toward Sydney.
"We've still got rain falling and some rivers still to peak ... we aren't over the worst of it yet," Federal Emergency Management Minister Kristy McBain told ABC Radio.
McBain said the Australian Defence Force has been carrying out search and rescue operations in the area.
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