Residents winched to safety as downpour swells flooding in NSW

7NEWS

21-05-2025

Flooded residents have been warned to prepare for long periods of isolation after parts of Australia's east copped four months of rain in two days.
More than 150 rescues were carried out on Wednesday, including helicopters lifting stranded occupants off their roofs to safety in the Hunter and mid-north coast regions of NSW.
Record-breaking floods in Taree came from a staggering 412mm of rain in two days, as the Manning River peaked at 6.4m and inundated businesses across the town.
'(That) is essentially five times the monthly rainfall for May for Taree,' the Bureau of Meteorology's Steve Bernasconi said.
'In essence, it's received one-third of its average annual rainfall in two days.'
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Glenthorne resident rescued from roof as NSW floods threaten.
A coastal trough is slowly moving over the NSW mid-north coast and bringing moderate to heavy rain to several towns, with some parts to take another 200mm in coming days.
The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has declared it a 'significant event' that should make it easier for residents to access assistance.
People in Gladstone, Kempsey, Smithtown, Belmore Right Bank, Kinchela Left Bank and Kinchela to Jerseyville have been told to evacuate in the last two hours due to flooding.
Five helicopters are involved in rooftop rescues, with another four on the way, including two Australian Defence Force choppers.
More than 1600 SES volunteers are on the job as community members across towns band together to offer support.
Taree might only be isolated for a day but other parts of the state could be trapped for up to a week, SES Commissioner Mike Wassing said.
'Those communities that suffer that isolation ... we've been engaging with these communities well prior to these floods arriving, we've had the evacuation orders out, and now today (are) very much our focus for the rescue operations,' he said.
More than 90 warnings were in place on Wednesday afternoon after falls of up to 280mm in some areas.
'For those people waiting to be rescued, we know this takes time. We are working on it,' Emergency Services Minister Jihad Dib told reporters on Wednesday.
'It is a priority and we ask you to be patient.
'We have seen images of people on roofs. You are the absolute priority.'
The bulk of rescues were in Taree, Wingham and Glenthorne, including several cars caught driving into floodwater.
Many people reported water rising into their homes as the night progressed, with some needing to seek refuge on their roofs, the SES said.
Some northern catchments are already saturated after being impacted by Cyclone Alfred in March.
Locals in Wingham said their local plaza, including the supermarket, could be under a foot of water.
'We are keeping a close eye on the evolving situation in New South Wales, and most of our stores remain open with plenty of food and supplies,' a Coles spokesperson told 7NEWS.com.au.
'Our Wingham and Kempsey stores have had to unfortunately close at this stage, and we will reopen these as soon as it is safe to do so.
'Our teams are working hard to ensure we have extra food deliveries on their way to our stores, so our communities can rest assured that we will continue to serve them as long as it's safe to do so.'
A stay-indoors message was issued for elevated inland parts of the mid-north coast, including Bowraville and the outskirts of Coffs Harbour.
Six-hourly rainfall totals of between 100mm and 140mm were possible through the day, the SES warned.
In the state's Hunter region, the Myall River is among the areas on flood watch, with local residents warned to monitor forecasts and rainfall and be ready to move to higher ground.
A significant event declaration is in place but the ICA said that may be escalated to an 'insurance catastrophe' given the scale of the flooding.
'The unfolding weather situation along the New South Wales Mid North Coast and Hunter regions is already breaking records, with evacuation orders in place for many towns and more rain forecast for the coming days,' said ICA chief executive Andrew Hall.
'While this significant event declaration is for those regions most impacted by flooding to date, we are closely monitoring the severe weather across the entire state.
'Insurers acknowledge these regions also experienced significant flooding in 2022.
'This flooding event is an ongoing emergency so while it's important people lodge a claim with their insurer as soon as they can, safety is our number one priority.
'We urge residents in these areas to remain alert and listen to the advice of local emergency services.'
'My houseboat went'
For Ray, a cleaner at Bulahdelah's Plough Inn Hotel, the rising river has already caused damage.
'My houseboat went,' he told AAP.
'I was looking across the jetty (Tuesday) morning and it wasn't there.
'It's the icing on the cake, (the weather) has been on and off for the last couple of weeks.'
The SES warned Bulahdelah residents to evacuate some areas on Tuesday afternoon.
Rain is expected to continue into the weekend amid the multi-day flood event.
Taree copped more than 267mm of rain across Monday and Tuesday, among some of the heaviest falls from the system.