The NSW and federal government on Sunday announced it would open financial support for residents,businesses and councils in 13 local government areas:Blue Mountains,Camden,Hawkesbury,Kiama,Liverpool,Penrith,Shellharbour,Shoalhaven,Sutherland,Upper Lachlan,Wingecarribee,Wollondilly and Wollongong.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said the money,delivered under the federal government’s Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements,would be focused on supporting people who lost their homes.
“Federal and state funds will flow to local councils,as well as to communities that have been knocked over,particularly those that have lost their houses,or those in a peril over the last 28 hours,” he said on Sky News.
The State Emergency Service performed 146 flood rescues across the state in the 24 hours to 5am – mostly for people who drove into flooded water – and responded to 1877 calls for help.
The agency held the most concern for areas of North Richmond,which experienced major flooding when the Hawkesbury River peaked at 10.52 metres at 9pm on Saturday.
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As of 6.40pm on Sunday,the river was at 8.44 metres with moderate flooding.
“The Hawkesbury River at North Richmond … may remain above the minor flood level (3.80 metres) until Monday morning,” the Bureau of Meteorology reported.
At Windsor,the Hawkesbury was sitting at 9.22 metres and falling. The area is experiencing moderate flooding,the bureau said,adding that the river would stay at this level until Monday afternoon. Water is lapping at the base of the Windsor Bridge.
At Penrith,the Nepean River experienced minor flooding.
“There are communities in the Hawkesbury that have been flooded multiple times over the last few years,” said Dallas Burnes,the SES senior manager of state operations,on Nine’sToday.He added that his own home in the Illawarra had been damaged. “I can only feel for them,it’s really hard. You can’t stop a flood.”
Hawkesbury mayor Sarah McMahon said her community was still “very anxious”.
“People have been very stressed overnight when those evacuation warnings came in late,” she said.
“We still do have a lot of people not in their homes and a lot of people concerned about their businesses on the lowlands.”
The bureau cancelled the majority of its flood warnings for other waterways throughout the state,but an advice-level warning has been issued by the SES for Byron Bay,following huge rainfall overnight.
The warnings were first issued in the hours after the Warragamba Dam reached capacity and began spilling over at 5.45am on Saturday.
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