SYDNEY, (Reuters) – Torrential rains kept battering Australia’s east coast on Tuesday, intensifying the floods crisis in Sydney as thousands more residents were ordered to leave their homes overnight after rivers swiftly rose past danger levels.
About 50,000 residents in New South Wales, the bulk in Sydney’s western suburbs, have been told to either evacuate or warned they might receive evacuation orders, up from Monday’s 30,000, state Emergency Management Minister Steph Cooke said. An intense low-pressure system off Australia’s east coast brought heavy rains with several places receiving about a month’s worth since Saturday.
The latest wild storm cell is likely to ease in Sydney on Tuesday, Cooke told local television, but the risk of flooding could remain through the week as most river catchments were already near full capacity even before the latest storm.
