Latest news with #floodvictims
Al Jazeera
3 days ago
- Climate
- Al Jazeera
Flash flooding kills dozens in Nigeria
NewsFeed Flash flooding kills dozens in Nigeria Rescuers in Nigeria are continuing to recover bodies after flash flooding killed at least 36 people. Torrential rain swept away more than 50 homes in Niger state.
Irish Times
23-05-2025
- Climate
- Irish Times
Australia floods: Death toll rises to four, tens of thousands stranded
The body of a man was found in a car trapped in floodwaters in Australia 's southeast on Friday, raising the death toll to four, after three days of incessant rain cut off entire towns, swept away livestock and destroyed homes. Police said the man was found near Coffs Harbour, around 550km (342 miles) north of Sydney. Around 50,000 people are still isolated, emergency services personnel said, while residents returning to their flooded homes were warned to watch out for dangers. 'Floodwaters have contaminants, there can be vermin, snakes ... so you need to assess those risks. Electricity can also pose a danger as well,' state Emergency Services Deputy Commissioner Damien Johnston said during a media briefing. READ MORE Television videos showed submerged intersections and street signs, cars up to their windshields in water, after fast-rising waters burst river banks in the Hunter and Mid North Coast regions of New South Wales, Australia's most populous state. Australia floods: The flooded Manning River Rowing Club. Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/ Getty Images Debris from the floods, and dead and lost livestock, have washed up on the coast. Prime minister Anthony Albanese said he had to cancel his planned visit to Taree, one of the worst-hit towns, due to floodwaters. 'We did try ... but that was not possible due to the circumstance, which I'm sure people understand,' Albanese told reporters from the town of Maitland in the Hunter region. Australia floods: waterlogged motorcycle showroom. Photograph: Seaeed Khan/AFP/ Getty Images 'But our thoughts are with communities that are cut off at this point in time. And we're here to basically say, very clearly, and explicitly you're not alone.' Australia has been enduring more extreme weather events that some experts say are happening because of climate change. After droughts and devastating bushfires at the end of last decade, frequent floods have wreaked havoc since early 2021. 'What once were rare downpours are now becoming the new normal – climate change is rewriting Australia's weather patterns, one flood at a time,' Davide Faranda, weather researcher at ClimaMeter, said in a statement. Australia floods: A road is seen flooded from the over flowing Wallis Creek. Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images A wild weather system that dumped around four months of rain over three days shifted south towards Sydney on Thursday bringing heavy rain overnight, though the weather bureau, in its latest update, said it is expected to ease by Friday evening. Water on rail tracks impacted some suburban train lines in Sydney, including its airport line services, while Sydney Airport was forced to shut down two of its three runways for one hour on Friday morning due to strong winds, delaying flights. Australia floods Volunteers help out locals to clear flood-damaged goods from shops. Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images Warragamba Dam, which supplies 80 per cent of Sydney's water supply and is at around 96 per cent of capacity, could spill over, officials said. – Reuters
CNA
23-05-2025
- Climate
- CNA
Death toll in Australia floods rises to four, tens of thousands stranded
SYDNEY: The body of a man was found in a car trapped in floodwaters in Australia's southeast on Friday (May 23), raising the death toll to four, after three days of incessant rain cut off entire towns, swept away livestock and destroyed homes. Police said the man was found near Coffs Harbour, around 550km north of Sydney. The search continued for a person missing since the deluge began early this week. Around 50,000 people are still isolated, emergency services personnel said, as they look to ramp up efforts to supply essential supplies after weather conditions eased. But authorities warned residents returning to their flooded homes to watch out for dangers. "If your home or premise has been inundated, floodwaters have contaminants. There can be vermin, snakes ... So you need to assess those risks. Electricity can also pose a danger as well," state emergency services deputy commissioner Damien Johnston told reporters. Television videos showed submerged intersections and street signs, cars up to their windshields in water, after fast-rising waters burst river banks and flooded several rural towns in the Hunter and Mid North Coast regions of New South Wales, Australia's most populous state. Debris from the floods, and dead and lost livestock, have washed up on the coast. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he would visit the flood-hit towns on Friday. "It's pretty horrific, the conditions ... this is a really serious situation," Albanese told radio station Triple M Newcastle. More than 100 schools remained closed on Friday, while thousands of properties were without power. Rivers would stay above danger levels for several days, authorities said. A wild weather system that dumped around four months of rain over three days shifted south towards Sydney on Thursday, though the weather bureau, in its latest update, said it is expected to ease by Friday evening. Warragamba Dam, which supplies 80 per cent of Sydney's water supply and is currently at around 96 per cent of capacity, could spill over soon after heavy rain overnight, officials said.
Reuters
23-05-2025
- Climate
- Reuters
Death toll in Australia floods rises to four, tens of thousands stranded
SYDNEY, May 23 (Reuters) - The body of a man was found in a car trapped in floodwaters in Australia's southeast on Friday, raising the death toll to four, after three days of incessant rain cut off entire towns, swept away livestock and destroyed homes. Police said the man was found near Coffs Harbour, around 550 km (342 miles) north of Sydney. The search continued for a person missing since the deluge began early this week. Around 50,000 people are still isolated, emergency services personnel said, as they look to ramp up efforts to supply essential supplies after weather conditions eased. But authorities warned residents returning to their flooded homes to watch out for dangers. "If your home or premise has been inundated, floodwaters have contaminants. There can be vermin, snakes ... So you need to assess those risks. Electricity can also pose a danger as well," state Emergency Services Deputy Commissioner Damien Johnston told reporters. Television videos showed submerged intersections and street signs, cars up to their windshields in water, after fast-rising waters burst river banks and flooded several rural towns in the Hunter and Mid North Coast regions of New South Wales, Australia's most populous state. Debris from the floods, and dead and lost livestock, have washed up on the coast. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he would visit the flood-hit towns on Friday. "It's pretty horrific, the conditions ... this is a really serious situation," Albanese told radio station Triple M Newcastle. More than 100 schools remained closed on Friday, while thousands of properties were without power. Rivers would stay above danger levels for several days, authorities said. A wild weather system that dumped around four months of rain over three days shifted south towards Sydney on Thursday, though the weather bureau, in its latest update, said it is expected to ease by Friday evening. Warragamba Dam, which supplies 80% of Sydney's water supply and is currently at around 96% of capacity, could spill over soon after heavy rain overnight, officials said.
Irish Times
22-05-2025
- Climate
- Irish Times
Record floodwaters in eastern Australia leave two dead and two missing
Record floodwaters on Australia's east coast have left two people dead and two others missing, officials said, as more heavy rain was forecast in the area. More than 500 people were rescued in the flooding emergency in New South Wales state north of Sydney. The area has been hit with heavy rain since Tuesday. The flooding exceeds local records set in 1921 and 1929. READ MORE News South Wales premier Christopher Minns said some areas were forecast to receive as much as 30cm of rain in the next 24 hours. He said 50,000 people were warned to prepare to evacuate or be isolated by floodwaters, telling reporters: 'We are bracing for more bad news.' The body of a 63-year-old man was recovered from a flooded house in Moto in New South Wales on Wednesday afternoon, fire and rescue commissioner Jeremy Fewtrell said. A coroner will determine whether a pre-existing medical condition played a part in his death, he added. The body of a man, aged in his 30s, was recovered from floodwaters early on Thursday, a police statement said. He had disappeared while attempting to drive through a flooded intersection on Wednesday night. A 60-year-old woman remained missing after her SUV became trapped in floodwaters on Wednesday night. Floodwaters surround houses in Port Macquarie, north of Sydney. Photograp: Lindsay Moller/AAP Image via AP The SUV was found on Thursday, police said. A 49-year-old man also failed to return home after walking near a flooded road on Wednesday night, police said. Mr Minns said more than 500 people had been rescued from floodwater in just over two days, many after trying to drive across flooded roads. Emergency services minister Jihad Dib said 330 flood rescues were conducted in the past 24 hours. Helicopters have been used to rescue people stranded by floodwaters from rooftops and verandas. 'We've seen more rain and more flooding in the mid-to-north coast area than we've ever seen before,' Mr Dib said. The flooding has hit communities including Taree, Kempsey, Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour and Bellingen in New South Wales. Taree received a month's rain in 24 hours, an official said. 'Up around the Taree area, we've seen communities that have never flooded in recorded history now flooding,' Mr Fewtrell said. The region has opened 14 evacuation centres as of Thursday. Government meteorologist Angus Hines said a low-pressure weather system had stalled over the flooded region since Monday, bringing 60cm of rain to some parts. 'If it had only been one day and then it had gone, we would have seen some minor or moderate flooding but it wouldn't have been too bad. But four days in a row of this amount of rainfall and we see this significant and extensive, widespread and major flood event happening in front of our eyes,' Mr Hines said. The rain was losing intensity on Thursday, he added. - AP
