NSW flooding: Lismore residents ordered to evacuate as town faces 'unprecedented' conditions
Updated
Sirens have sounded in Lismore to warn residents they must leave immediately, as New South Wales emergency services face "unprecedented" flood levels on the north coast.
NSW warnings:
- Evacuation order for Murwillumbah CBD and Murwillumbah south and east, Condong and Tumbulgum areas
- Evacuation order for Chinderah, Kingscliff, Fingal Head and Bilambil
- Evacuation order for Lismore CBD, North and South Lismore
- Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South and West
- Murwillumbah CBD and East
- Wilsons River at Lismore expected to get to higher levels than 2001 and 2005 floods
- See the full list of SES flood warnings
A torrent of water is rushing through central Lismore and floodwater has topped the town's levee for the first time since it was built 12 years ago.
Streets throughout the town are fast becoming cut off and ABC reporter Jackson Vernon says residents are standing around looking in disbelief.
The State Emergency Service (SES) said the situation was extremely serious and warned residents to act with extreme caution.
SES spokesman Ian Leckie said many people were trapped across the region because of the rapid rate of water rising.
"We have everything happening — we have people on rooftops, we have people stuck in vans, it is an utter disaster," he said.
"This is the fastest event we have seen in this area for a long, long time. The rate of rise has caught people unaware and they are trapped."
"It's a highly dangerous situation — people should not be in the area."
Lismore Mayor Isaac Smith said the water is not coming over the top of the levee as fast as expected, meaning it is doing its job in protecting the town.
"Because the levee has over-topped for the first time, we're just waiting to see what happens. But, at this stage, the levee looks strong, it's held and done its job," he said.
"It's given everyone a lot of time to get out of the basin, and we're just waiting now to see how high up the water comes."
SES acting deputy commissioner Mark Morrow said many businesses and homes in the Lismore CBD would be inundated with up to three metres of water after massive amounts of rain overnight.
"They're talking about this flood exceeding the heights of 2001 and 2005, but what that means is that most of the businesses in the Lismore CBD will have up to three metres of water over the floor.
"That's up to about roof level in their house or even higher. So I think in the cold, hard light of day there's going to be some images this morning that are going to be very distressing. A lot of people that are going to be displaced from their businesses or their homes."
Flood records have been broken at Murwillumbah and hydrologist Justin Robinson said the swollen Tweed River had caused a lot of damage.
"We've estimated it to be about 6.2 metres at Murwillumbah, around 4:30am. That's actually higher than the record flood in 1954, which was 6.05 metres and higher than the 1974 flood event, which was 5.8 metres. So, obviously, a very serious flood situation," he said.
The SES has received over 1,300 calls for help and 148 rescues were carried out overnight as ex-tropical Cyclone Debbie continues to dump heavy rain across the region.
Over 20,000 people have been evacuated from areas around Lismore, Murwillumbah, Ocean Shores, Kyogle and Kingscliff and another 20,000 people are subject to an evacuation order, mainly on the Tweed River but also on the Wilsons River at Lismore.
People who need assistance are advised to go to an evacuation centre at Southern Cross University on Military Road in East Lismore.
Donna Walker, who had to take her children and leave their North Lismore home for the university centre, said they were making the best of the situation.
"I said to the kids, we're all in the same situation. We're all nervous, we're all upset, we're all not knowing where we're going, what we're doing next, or what's going to happen to our belongings," she said.
"So you know, take it easy on each other, so there's no fighting, and things like that."
Topics: floods, disasters-and-accidents, weather, murwillumbah-2484, nsw, lismore-2480, north-lismore-2480, condong-2484, tweed-heads-2485, tumbulgum-2490, bilambil-2486, mullumbimby-2482, uki-2484, fingal-head-2487, kingscliff-2487, chinderah-2487, tweed-heads-west-2485, tweed-heads-south-2486
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