Another anxious night has passed for flood-affected residents of several regional NSW towns and rural areas.
Key points:
- The Hunter River at Singleton appears to have peaked below earlier expectations
- Floodwaters could reach major levels at Coonamble today
- Residents at Gunnedah and Wee Waa continue to be on alert from the rising Namoi River
Locals in Singleton in the Hunter Valley are breathing a sigh of relief after the Hunter River peaked lower than feared.
It’s steady at 12.69 metres, below the major flood level of 13 metres.
The State Emergency Service said there were no reports of property inundation or flood rescues, but large swathes of farmland had been inundated and some roads cut off.
Singleton resident John Atkins lives in a low lying property just metres from the swollen Hunter River and has lived in the area for more than 60 years.
“I wasn’t too panicked,” he said.
“The only thing I was worrying about was my cattle, but I got them all to higher ground, and I’ve got hay in the shed, and they’re happy.”
Jeff Brown was surveying an inundated sports field in the cente of town on Sunday morning.
“It’s not too bad I don’t think, I’ve seen it worse,” he said.
It follows an evacuation order which was made by the State Emergency Service last night, for about 2,000 people in the Whittingham, Scotts Flat, Glenridding, Dunolly and Combo areas around Singleton.
Northern NSW also remains a concern, with the Namoi River still causing major flooding at Wee Waa and Gunnedah.
That river could cause moderate flooding at Narrabri this weekend.
Western NSW remaining a focus
In Western NSW, the Castlereagh River is continuing to rise.
The SES said major flooding is likely at Coonamble from this morning, similar to the 2010 event. Moderate flooding was expected in Gilgandra from yesterday.
Along the Macquarie River, moderate flooding is already occurring at Narromine and the downstream town of Warren can expect a major flood peak from tomorrow.
Renewed rises of the Lachlan River have been observed at Cowra, which first experienced significant flooding two weeks ago.
Levels have peaked at Jemalong, downstream of Forbes, and while slowly dropping, are still above the major flood level.
Moderate flooding is occurring at Condobolin.
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