By Fatima Saka
Thousands of Sydney residents have been told to evacuate their homes as floods ravage eastern Australia.
In the past fortnight, New South Wales (NSW) and Queensland have been pummelled by heavy downpours that have caused floods and killed 20 people.
The BBC reports that the threat has now intensified in Sydney, which has been hit by widespread flash-flooding.
Two bodies believed to be of a woman, 67, and her son, 34 – were found in a Sydney canal on Tuesday and according to the reports from police, their deaths would be investigated.
The police said the canal had risen “from ankle-deep to above neck height in a matter of minutes and residents in the state Premier Dominic Perrottet, about 40,000 has been ordered to evacuate, and another 20,000 people were on standby.
The police further added that a dam in the suburb of Manly had begun to spill, and a flooded river was threatening lives in the city’s southwest, where there was also a “substantial catastrophe” in the state’s north, where more than 800 people had been placed in temporary accommodation.
The State Emergency Service said more than 2,500 people had requested help in the past 24 hours. Australian Defence Force soldiers have also been deployed.
Mr Perrottet said the best thing you can do right across our state is follow those instructions and please do not drive through flood waters.
