NSW: People rescued from trees, cars as Tamworth flooded
29 Nov 2008 1:46 PM
Eds: reissuing to include pix advisory
SYDNEY, Nov 29 AAP - People have been rescued from trees, cars and causeways after floodwaters cut the northern NSW town of Tamworth in two.
The Peel River peaked at almost six metres after more than 164mm of rain deluged the area over the past 24 hours, causing widespread flash flooding.
The river peaked at 5.9 metres at about 9am (AEDT) on Saturday and West Tamworth remains cut off, the State Emergency Service (SES) says.
An SES spokeswoman said the service had taken almost 170 calls for help, mainly to help patch up leaking roofs and assist with sandbagging.
But a number of people had been rescued after getting into difficulty.
"People stranded across causeways, people who have been washed off causeways, people in trees, people trapped in vehicles," a local SES controller told ABC Radio.
The SES spokeswoman said people were urged to take care and avoid flooded areas.
"We're warning people to stay out of the floodwaters," she said.
"There haven't been any widespread evacuations, but several people have been rescued from their homes and cars trapped in the water."
NSW Premier Nathan Rees, attending the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting in Canberra, said everything was under control in Tamworth.
"I'm still being briefed by our SES people on that. As far as I'm aware everything's under control in Tamworth," he told reporters in Canberra on Saturday.
"But 150mm of rain over the last 24 hours in an area that's been drought stricken for some time, it's the dual-edged sword that rural Australia is so used to."
