NSW: 500 Bellinger Valley residents remain isolated by flooding

AAP General News (Australia)
02-16-2009
NSW: 500 Bellinger Valley residents remain isolated by flooding

SYDNEY, Feb 16 AAP - More than 500 residents of the Bellinger Valley in northern NSW
remain isolated by flood waters after heavy rain on Monday morning.

Floodwaters have eased in other inundated parts of NSW, but more rain is forecast for
the state as a low pressure system moves south.

Heavy rain has fallen on the Bellinger Valley area since 6am (AEDT), leading the weather
bureau to issue a renewed flood warning for the town of Thora and the upper valley, including
the community of Darkwood.

The State Emergency Service (SES) initially said floodwaters were expected to ease
in the Bellinger Valley on Monday.

But a spokesman said the SES now expected communities in the upper Bellinger Valley
to be cut off.

"It is going to mean that the community of Darkwood is going to remain isolated for
the remainder of the day and there are around 500 people who live in that particular area,
upstream from Thora," SES spokesman Phil Campbell said.

"It means children won't be able to go to school."

The SES was maintaining a close watch on the community, he said.

"We do have access to be able to get in there and look after those people should they
require any assistance."

However, most of the properties were well prepared for flooding.

The bureau also said it had received reports of bridges flooding in the Taylors Arm
area in the Nambucca Valley.

The SES received more than 400 calls for help at the weekend as heavy rain fell on
western NSW and the state's mid-north coast.

A low pressure system that caused most of the problems had moved offshore near Coffs
Harbour by Monday morning.

It was expected to track towards the coast, causing heavy rain from the mid-north
coast to Sydney on Monday night or Tuesday morning.

The rain was expected to hang around NSW until at least Wednesday.

AAP krc/wjf/srp

KEYWORD: RAIN NSW UPDATE

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