Woman swept away in flood waters in Hunter region as emergency services respond to more than 1,450 incidents

The Guardian

4 days ago

A search is underway after a woman was swept into a flooded creek in the Hunter region overnight, as heavy downpours continue to batter large parts of northern New South Wales.
Police said the car, a Mini, was being driven by a 27-year-old woman in Rothbury, near Cessnock, when it became stuck on Old North Road, through the swollen creek, just before 8pm on Saturday.
The woman and a passenger, another woman in her 20s, attempted to flee the vehicle. The driver escaped but passenger was swept into the floodwaters, police say.
When emergency services workers arrived, they also located a 40-year-old man stuck in a tree nearby, after he also apparently became trapped in the rising water.
The man was swept back into the creek during a first attempted rescue by the State Emergency Service; he was eventually pulled from the water after rescuers tracked him along Black Creek.
Police, emergency services, and firefighters expect to resume a search for the missing woman on Sunday.
Warnings remain in place for several regions – including the Coffs Coast, Mid-North Coast, Upper Hunter and New England regions – after several days of heavy rain. Forecasters are warning that rain will continue and that parts of the Hunter and the north coast will be hit with potentially damaging winds.
Power was cut to at least 27,500 homes in NSW, as snow was recorded in some parts of the state and even across the Queensland border.
Between 50 and 100mm of rain drenched parts of Mid-North Coast and northern Hunter on Saturday.
The NSW State Emergency Service said it responded to more than 1,450 incidents related to rainfall, thunderstorms and snow.
The Bureau of Meteorology says a new low-pressure system is expected to push up the NSW coast on Sunday, but conditions are likely to ease by the afternoon.
Residents in parts of Scone and Taree have been asked to evacuate amid a major flood threat.
'Most of these damaging wind gusts will be driven by showers and thunderstorms,' meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said.
Authorities warn surfers, fishers, swimmers and boating enthusiasts to stay clear of the coast amid dangerous swells.
- with AAP