Flood waters travel to NSW

[Jim Goose]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2...12/3110963.htm

NSW river exceeds predicted peak

Updated 8 minutes ago


About 2,000 people on the New South Wales north coast remain on alert for possible evacuation, with the Clarence River rising faster than predicted.

The river has already reached the 7.3 metre peak which had been expected at 9:00pm (AEDT), and is now heading for a 7.6 metre peak.

A warning was issued to residents in the Ulmarra, Brushgrove and Cowper areas at 6:00am (AEDT).

Ulmarra publican, Edwina Baird, says plenty of people are lining the riverbanks to watch the water rush by.

"The river's rising fast, everyone's very calm," she said.

"There's a lot of detritus coming down the river from all the tributaries but it's moving fast.

"There's a bit of anticipation, not knowing what's going on because it's not actually raining here."

The State Member, Steve Cansdell, says the city of Grafton should be saved by its levee of 8.2 metres.

Further west, the SES says it is expecting a flood peak of 12.4 metres tomorrow at Boggabilla, near Goondiwindi on the Queensland border, making it one of the largest floods in the area's history.

Spokesman, Phil Campbell, says assessments are currently being done about when and where evacuations may be necessary from Boggabilla and nearby Tumelah.

He says all necessary precautions must be taken as the Macintyre River rises.

"The SES does have concerns that, at the height of 12.4 metres, significant amounts of water will enter the streets of the town flowing under and potentially through some houses," he said.

"We've also got concerns for the viability of the town's water and other essential services. As such, the decision is being made for a possible evacuation of those two communities."

The villages of Bonalbo, Ewingar, Upper Thora and Darkwood remained isolated by floodwaters overnight. Yamba and Iluka are also expected to become isolated today.

Meanwhile, the flood crisis in Tenterfield appears to have stabilised for the time being.

Yesterday, SES, police and council staff established an emergency operation centre at the Council Chambers as rising floodwaters cut the town in half, damaging roads and threatening the town's sewerage and water supplies.

Twenty people from rural properties in the area were moved to safety by helicopter.

The flood situation in the Bellinger Valley, on the mid-north coast, is also improving.

A flood watch remains in place for minor flooding of the Bellinger and Nambucca Rivers.

Travel warning

Motorists intending to use the Pacific or New England Highways to travel through northern New South Wales have been advised to cancel their trip.

Flooding has closed the Pacific highway from Halfway Creek in the south to Maclean in the north and the New England Highway is closed north of the Queensland border.

The RTA's David Wright says the Orara Way, which is the alternative route between Coffs and Grafton, is also closed in both directions.

"It looks like they're going to be closed for some days," he said.

"We had reports that one particular bridge around the Nana Glen area is actually eight metres underwater, so you can imagine that road is going to be unpassable for quite some time, at least until that water certainly subsides."

The Gwydir Highway remains closed between Grafton and Glen Innes, the Bruxner Highway remains closed between Casino and Tenterfield and the Summerland way has been closed overnight from Grevillia to the Queensland border.

In western NSW, the Kamilaroi Highway is closed between Bourke and Brewarrina.

Premier visits

The New South Wales Premier Kristina Keneally is making her second trip in seven days to the north of the state to inspect the worsening flood situation.

She intends to visit Grafton today, after travelling to inland Goodooga last week.

Ms Keneally says she wants to inspect the damage and ensure flood response efforts are adequate.

Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell is preparing to meet with mayors in the flood -affected regions of, Narromine, Bourke, Warren, Gillgandra and the Warrumbungle shires.

The flooding rains have added four areas to the Natural Disaster Declarations.

That makes a total of 63 Local Government Areas declared natural disaster areas since December.

The new declarations are for Inverell, Leeton, Gwydir and Clarence Valley.

For latest weather warnings visit the Bureau of Meteorology.

For further information visit the State Emergency Service and Roads and Traffic Authority websites.