Category: Australia

Hundreds of NSW residents remain under evacuation orders on the first day of school holidays, with forecasts warning it will take time for water to drain from saturated catchments.

Heavy falls eased across much of NSW on Friday, however, flooding is likely to continue in parts of Greater Sydney throughout the weekend.

River rises were still being observed in the Hawkesbury-Nepean on Friday and 13 evacuation orders remained in place across 11 low-lying suburbs.

On the first day of the Easter school holiday, some 1200 people remain under evacuation order, and a further 1,500 have been given warnings they may still need to leave.

“We’re urging people in those communities to remain vigilant,” NSW SES Assistant Commissioner Dean Storey told the ABC on Friday.

“Hopefully we’ll be able to lift those evacuation orders and evacuation warnings as soon as it’s safe to do so.”

Recent severe weather events had taken a toll on communities and SES rescuers, he said.

“It has been a very tough few months for communities across NSW including in Western Sydney with multiple major weather events,” he said.

“It is heartbreaking. It’s been a very tough storm season, one of the toughest in recent memory for the SES.”

The SES has received more than 2300 calls for help and conducted about 700 rescues since the rain event began Monday.

On Saturday morning, the SES said over the last 24 hours it had conducted nine flood rescues and received more than 280 requests for help.

More than 1,200 SES volunteers were on the ground on Friday.

In southwest Sydney, the body of a 68-year-old man was found in a submerged van before 8am on Friday.

His body was retrieved about 1pm following an operation by police divers and the SES, but he is yet to be formally identified.

The Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley is being monitored with moderate flooding at North Richmond, Windsor, Menangle, Camden and Wallacia, and peaks expected on Friday night and Saturday morning.

In Penrith, the Nepean River peaked at moderate flood levels on Friday and was falling, and in Sackville the peak is expected on Saturday, while water continues to spill at Warragamba Dam.

A flood warning has also been issued for the Orara River on the Mid North Coast, with minor flooding possible at Coutts Crossing.

“Despite the substantial flooding that we’ve seen across our state, what is incredibly pleasing has been that we’ve only lost a very few amount of lives, and that has occurred because of the efforts that everyone has made across our state in following the instructions of the SES,” NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said Friday.

Emergency Services Minister Steph Cooke said the people of NSW were fatigued from extreme weather, but needed to keep following the advice of emergency services.

“It will stop raining, it will get better,” Ms Cooke said.

“We just need to keep (getting) through this one day at a time.” SBS

Edna Harling can still clearly remember when the Spanish flu swept through her hometown of Kerang in northern Victoria.

It was 1918 and she was three years old, sleeping on a tiny bed in a tent in the hospital yard.

“There were tents all around the yard, because the hospital was full of patients,” she said.

Ms Harling’s older sister, who was six, was among them.

“I was lucky to get out,” Ms Harling recalled.

“She didn’t.”

The influenza pandemic was one of the worst natural disasters in history, emerging in the final months of World War I and spread across the world by returning soldiers.

Now 107 years old, Ms Harling has found herself facing another pandemic — COVID-19.

But ever since the death of her sister she has been keenly aware of the importance of vaccinations.

Last Christmas, after two years of on-and-off lockdowns at her Shepparton aged care facility, she caught coronavirus.

At the time, she was double vaccinated.

“I’m sure it helped me, because I wasn’t that bad,” Ms Harling said.

Three months on, Ms Harling has recovered and has since received her booster dose.

“And if another one comes tomorrow, I’ll have that too,” she said.

She is now urging others to receive the jab.

“They must be a help for us, because really and truly, we haven’t gotten rid of the virus yet,” Ms Harling said.

The Shepparton centenarian has certainly had an impact, with Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley singing her praises.

“I want to thank Edna for getting her vaccines and keeping herself and her friends and family safe from this deadly virus,” he said.

“Edna has received her third dose of the vaccine and I encourage all Victorians to protect themselves from COVID-19 by getting their third dose as soon as they’re eligible.”

As one of Australia’s oldest people, Ms Harling has lived a long and full life, including 57 years of marriage with her love, Chris.

They travelled around Victoria for years while he taught in 14 different schools, before retiring in Shepparton.

In that time, Ms Harling also enjoyed a lawn bowling career of 60 years, which saw her win state titles and become a member of the Australian team.

“When COVID-19 came, that ruined sport and ruined all the gatherings,” she said.

“It was hard to work it all out … when I was tiny [during the Spanish Flu], maybe it was similar.abcnew

Peter Malinauskas will be the next South Australian premier following Labor’s victory at the state election on Saturday.

Labor has won the South Australian election after recording a strong swing against Premier Steven Marshall’s Liberal government.

It is the first loss for an incumbent government at any state or territory election during the pandemic.

Labor leader Peter Malinauskas will be the state’s new premier.

Mr Marshall conceded on Saturday night, three hours after vote counting started.

“It has been an honour and privilege to serve the people of South Australia,” he told supporters.

“I think it’s great to live in a country where we have free and open elections.”

Labor will pick up a string of seats, enough to govern in its own right.

The Electoral Commission had Labor’s primary vote on 39.8 per cent and the Liberals on 35.7 per cent with about 30 per cent of the vote counted.

That put Labor ahead in 27 seats, the Liberals in 15, and independents in six.

Labor needed 24 in the House of Assembly to claim a majority.

Mr Marshall was also in danger of losing his own eastern suburbs seat of Dunstan.

Across a number of seats, Labor appeared to be attracting voters who supported Nick Xenophon’s SA-Best party at the last election.

It looked set to win the key marginal contests of King, Newland, Adelaide and Elder; the four seats considered most likely to fall if the opposition was to win.

Labor was also challenging sitting Liberal candidates in a range of seats previously considered safe for the government.

Key independents Dan Cregan in the Adelaide Hills, Geoff Brock, who shifted to the seat of Stuart in the mid-north, and Troy Bell in Mt Gambier were also on track to be re-elected.

Should Mr Brock prevail, Deputy Premier Dan van Holst Pellekaan would also exit the parliament

Mr Malinauskas said earlier on Saturday that the election was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the state to rebuild after the COVID-19 global pandemic.

“You only get one chance to rebuild from the global pandemic,” he said.

“South Australia has a really clear choice today. A choice between a government that seems to be at war with itself, or a fresh united team with a clear vision for the future of our state.” SBS, The Advertiser

Thousands of people in Sydney’s south-west have been ordered to leave their homes as rising waters spark chaos.An east coast low is causing significant rainfall over Greater Sydney and its surrounds, and authorities have warned it is expected to continue for an extended period. The NSW State Emergency Service (SES) and Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) spoke at 9am EDT.

The body of a woman has been found not far from where a car belonging to a mother and son was discovered in a stormwater canal in Sydney’s west.

Police sources have told the ABC a woman’s body is being recovered in Wentworthville, close to where the empty vehicle was found in rising waters about 4.30pm yesterday.

The woman has not been formally identified.

A crime scene has been set up at the end of Hopkins Street near Toongabbie Creek.

SES crews, police officers and detectives are on the scene.

This time it’s for towns in the state’s South Coast

The State Emergency Service is directing people in low-lying parts of St Georges Basin and Sussex Inlet to get out by noon.

Residents are warned rising waters will reach a height that will impact properties in St Georges Basin. Road access is expected to be lost, as could sewerage and power lines.

The SES says if you stay conditions could become too dangerous for rescues.

Parts of Sussex Inlet face being isolated once Sussex Inlet Gauge rises to 1.4m.

Evacuation centres have been set up at the Bombaderry Bowling Club and Sussex inlet Bowling Club.

Ukrainian community members in Australia have told SBS News they are desperately trying to respond to calls from those seeking visas to come here as concerns for their safety escalate.

Australian-Ukrainian community members have expressed deep concern over Russia’s escalation of military action against Ukraine as fears mount over the human cost of the act of aggression.

Leaders of Australia’s Ukraine community met with Immigration Minister Alex Hawke on Thursday to discuss the federal government’s response to the unfolding crisis.

The emergency meeting was held just before Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed a “military operation” in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region.

Ukrainian-Australian Mar’yana Sywak is among those fearing for loved ones, with her parents Evgen and Valentina located in southeast Ukraine around 200 kilometres from Donbas.

She’s desperately trying to secure them a visitor visa but, with the situation in Ukraine rapidly getting worse, is worried time is running out to get them to safety.

“We’re all afraid that even if the visa will be granted it will be too late to escape,” she told SBS News.

“I really want them to be safe, to be here with me.”

Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations co-chairman Stefan Romaniw said the community members had conveyed the need for decisive action to support Ukrainians abroad.

“There was a sense of urgency [in the meeting with Mr Hawke] that emergency visas had to be issued,” he said.

“We’ve already had numerous calls from people in Ukraine asking how they can get out and get a visa here.”

Shelling and explosions have intensified since Mr Putin recognised the two separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent and ordered troops into these areas.

Mr Romaniw expressed deep concern over the deteriorating situation, with fears rapidly escalating for those abroad in the danger area.

“Human lives are going to be lost – blood is going to be shed. The way [Vladimir Putin’s] talking there could be rivers of blood and corpses,” he told SBS News.

“It’s time to step up.”

Amid this uncertainty, the Australian government has promised visa applications from Ukrainian nationals are being fast-tracked for processing.

Mr Hawke told community members on Thursday during their meeting the Australian government stood ready to work “urgently” to address concerns over the safety of Ukrainians.

“It is a very dark time (for) people in Ukraine with the threat of invasion looming over them,” he said during the meeting.

“We are working as fast as we can to process visas, to enable people to come here as quickly as possible.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said Australia will work closely with European partners to deal with the “likelihood of displaced persons” arising from the conflict in Ukraine.

The government has promised to expedite 430 outstanding applications from Ukrainian citizens to come to Australia as a matter of urgency, across a range of visa classes.

It has also committed to extending visas for Ukraine nationals in Australia by up to six months, to ensure they are not forced to return to danger.

But it remains unclear whether the response would include allocating specialist humanitarian visas for Ukrainian nationals at this time.

The current crisis comes after Australia recently pledged 15,000 visas through the humanitarian and family visa pathways for Afghan nationals over four years within the existing cap.

The response has placed pressure on the Department of Home Affairs’ processing capabilities as officials work through applications on behalf of some 145,000 people seeking protection.

Mr Morrison instead indicated it could be more likely Australia’s response would be through supporting the efforts of European partners to offer protection to those abroad.

As tension ramps up in eastern Europe, the federal government has also appealed for Australians to urgently get out of Ukraine.

So far, 184 nationals have registered with the embassy but as many as 1,400 are thought to still be in the danger zone.

There are also some 1,027 Ukrainians outside Australia who have visas to enter Australia, who the government has also said would be welcomed into the country. SBS News

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a tsunami warning for parts of Australia’s east coast after an undersea volcano erupted near Tonga.
The warning stretches across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, and also is for Lord Howe, Norfolk and Macquarie islands.
The BoM says the size of the waves means the threat is for the marine environment, but there is potential for land impact on Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island.

What is a marine warning?

There are three categories of threat levels within tsunami warnings, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) says.
No threat is when an undersea earthquake has been detected, however it has not generated a tsunami, or the tsunami poses no threat to Australia and its offshore territories.
Marine and immediate foreshore threat is a warning of potentially dangerous rips, waves and strong ocean currents in the marine environment and the possibility of only some localised overflow onto the immediate foreshore.
Land inundation threat is a warning for low-lying coastal areas of major land inundation, flooding, dangerous rips, waves and strong ocean currents.

How often do tsunamis occur?

Tsunamis are recorded in Australia about once every two years, the BoM says.
“Most are small and present little threat of land inundation to our coastal communities.
“However the abnormal waves, tides and currents caused by even relatively small tsunami can be dangerous to swimmers and mariners.”

Tasmania has recorded 404 new Covid-19 infections while the number of people in hospital with the virus has grown to three.

The state’s health department confirmed the new cases on Sunday morning, as active infections across the state rose to 1219 cases.

The figures represented a slight decrease on Saturday’s daily case tally, when 428 were recorded.

Sixty cases are being cared for at community case management facilities and 316 are being managed at home.

Only one of three cases in the state’s hospitals are there due to Covid-19, with the other two admitted to hospital due to unrelated conditions.

There are no Covid-19 cases in intensive care or requiring ventilation.

More than 1500 tests were performed on New Year’s Day with another 1200 booked in on Sunday.

Health Minister Jeremy Rockliff said 120 people were released from isolation on Saturday after recovering from Covid-19.

He said a three-year-old child had tested positive for Covid-19 in the state’s south, after presenting to Royal Hobart Hospital’s emergency department.

‘While no doubt distressing for the family, the child was treated by an emergency department medical specialist and was deemed safe for discharge,’ Mr Rockliff said in a statement.

He said rapid antigen tests remained available to asymptomatic close contacts or anyone directed to take a test by the health department.

‘Please contact the Public Health Hotline if you cannot obtain a RAT test and we will direct you to a distribution point in the South, North and North West,’ he said.

‘While the case numbers will continue to cause some concern in the community – which is completely understandable – it is not unexpected, and the reason we are now able to live with Covid is because of our highly vaccinated population.’

On Saturday Premier Peter Gutwein said, with a highly vaccinated population, Tasmania would not be heading into lockdown or closing its borders.

But he did advise caution to travellers, reminding Tasmanians and visitors if they contracted the virus or became a close contact while away, they would have to isolate at their own cost. DailyMail

Police were called to Cedars Road, Kains Flat, about 35km north-east of Mudgee in the Mid-Western region about 5.45pm on Monday.

Police were told 14-year-old boy Eli Jones and 12-year-old girl Hannah Jones went for a walk about 2.30pm and did not come back.

Police rescue, specialist police and the dog squad are all involved in the search, along with NSW Ambulance, Rural Fire Service Volunteer Rescue Association and the Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service.

Eli Jones is described as being of Caucasian appearance, about 175cm tall, with brown hair and believed to be wearing a grey t-shirt.

Hannah Jones is described as being of Caucasian appearance, about 160cm tall, with brown hair and believed to be wearing a pink top. 9NEWS