Southern Australia hit by worst floods in decades
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Pastor Dale Morgan
Sep 5, 2010, 10:42:12 PM9/5/10
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Perilous Times and Climate Change
Southern Australia hit by worst floods in decades
Agence France-Press September 4, 2010
SYDNEY, Australia - Scores of homes were under water and tens of thousands of people without power in southern Australia Sunday, officials said, as drenching rains produced the worst flooding in decades.
Soldiers were called in and a natural disaster declared in Victoria state after intense rain pushed rivers to breaking point, flooding at least 250 homes and isolating entire towns, the State Emergency Service said.
"Victoria has seen continued severe weather across the state," an SES spokeswoman told AFP.
"(About) 250 properties are affected but it's a bit too early to tell what the widespread damage is. The flooding isn't over as yet, it's expected to go on for a number of days."
Skiers were stranded at mountaintop resorts overnight as the wild weather triggered landslides.
Hundreds of people slept on classroom floors after being evacuated from their homes and the SES said it had received more than 2,000 calls since midnight Saturday.
About 40,000 homes were without power and the sewage system in some towns had also been overloaded, spilling human waste into the surging waters.
Premier John Brumby said the army would help sand-bag the worst affected areas and assist with evacuations, warning that some rivers would not reach their peak for a number of days and the worst was yet to come.
"The real issue now is the next 36 to 48 hours . . . those floodwaters will continue to increase and continue to move," said Brumby.
Some areas had received more than 200 millimetres (eight inches) of rain and the SES said it was the region's worst flooding since the 1990s.
"Our state is very wet. We are seeing flood levels that we haven't seen for many years," said SES state controller Tim Wiebusch.
Officials said they had used a new SMS and telephone warning system, developed in response to last year's Black Saturday firestorm, which killed 173 people and razed entire towns in the state.
The Bureau of Meteorology cancelled its severe weather warning as rains eased but said flood warnings remained in place for several areas.
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Southern+Australia+worst+floods+years/3484216/story.html#ixzz0yiIC6Ryx
Southern Australia hit by worst floods in decades
Agence France-Press September 4, 2010
SYDNEY, Australia - Scores of homes were under water and tens of thousands of people without power in southern Australia Sunday, officials said, as drenching rains produced the worst flooding in decades.
Soldiers were called in and a natural disaster declared in Victoria state after intense rain pushed rivers to breaking point, flooding at least 250 homes and isolating entire towns, the State Emergency Service said.
"Victoria has seen continued severe weather across the state," an SES spokeswoman told AFP.
"(About) 250 properties are affected but it's a bit too early to tell what the widespread damage is. The flooding isn't over as yet, it's expected to go on for a number of days."
Skiers were stranded at mountaintop resorts overnight as the wild weather triggered landslides.
Hundreds of people slept on classroom floors after being evacuated from their homes and the SES said it had received more than 2,000 calls since midnight Saturday.
About 40,000 homes were without power and the sewage system in some towns had also been overloaded, spilling human waste into the surging waters.
Premier John Brumby said the army would help sand-bag the worst affected areas and assist with evacuations, warning that some rivers would not reach their peak for a number of days and the worst was yet to come.
"The real issue now is the next 36 to 48 hours . . . those floodwaters will continue to increase and continue to move," said Brumby.
Some areas had received more than 200 millimetres (eight inches) of rain and the SES said it was the region's worst flooding since the 1990s.
"Our state is very wet. We are seeing flood levels that we haven't seen for many years," said SES state controller Tim Wiebusch.
Officials said they had used a new SMS and telephone warning system, developed in response to last year's Black Saturday firestorm, which killed 173 people and razed entire towns in the state.
The Bureau of Meteorology cancelled its severe weather warning as rains eased but said flood warnings remained in place for several areas.
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Southern+Australia+worst+floods+years/3484216/story.html#ixzz0yiIC6Ryx
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