Authorities going door-to-door in Forbes as river set to flood

Flood levels in the NSW Central West town are expected to reach up to 10.65m, similar to those experienced in September 2016 – or even higher – and flooding is expected to continue into tomorrow.

Residents in the town are strongly being advised by the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) to leave, and overnight crews have been knocking on doors to alert locals to the imminent danger.

Emergency crews have already had at least 1500 calls for help, especially from residents wanting to get sandbags to protect their homes.

All eyes are on the slowly rising Lachlan River, after the area had two or three times November’s total rainfall falling in just days.

Wyangala Dam, upstream from Forbes, is at 103.4 per cent capacity and water authorities are releasing tens of thousands of megalitres in a controlled spill.

The river at Nanami is likely to peak near 12.4m on Tuesday morning with major flooding, slightly higher than the 2016 peak, as floodwaters from Cowra combine with those from the Belubula River.

“We are assessing and working closely with the Bureau in regards to predictions that may escalate to an evacuation order – when that does occur forewarning will be given to those residents,” SES Superintendent Greg Swindells told reporters.

“The community of Forbes is quite resilient. They’re aware as to what could occur.”

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has declared Forbes – 350km west of Sydney – a “key area of concern,” with the flood forecasters closely monitoring the situation.

BOM team leader for national flood operations Justin Robinson said the flood levels currently seen in Nanami are higher than the Lachlan River’s 10.7m water level recorded in September 2016.

Mr Robinson said once the flood levels peak at Forbes, they could also reach “levels as high as 2016, and even possibly higher”.

“We’re keeping a very close eye on those forecasts and warnings, how those river levels are rising, and will be updating the warnings and forecasts as soon as we have information that can help those communities prepare,” he said.

Describing the situation as a “slow-moving evolving event”, he urged residents in Cowra, Nanami and Forbes to keep an eye on level rises and forecasts over the next few days.

“It looks like floodwaters are taking a little bit longer to get there than the previous one, so now we are expecting floodwaters to exceed the major flood level overnight Tuesday and Wednesday,” he said.

“We might see that peak actually occurred sometime during the day on Wednesday.”

BOM NSW manager Agata Imielska urged residents to “take action now” and said more flood events could occur this season due to wet catchments and full dams.

“It’s really important for communities there to continue taking those protective actions, to really keep a close eye on warnings, but it is also important for the state more broadly to take heed of this a severe weather season,” she said.

“Really make sure you have a plan and take action now to prepare yourself.”

Evacuation order may be necessary

Much of the nation was drenched over the past week prompting flood warnings across most of NSW and Victoria after heavy falls led to overflowing catchments.

Mr Swindells said evacuation warnings had been issues to 800 low-lying properties and this could be escalated into an “evacuation order”.

“When that does happen, those residents will be given clear instructions as to what they should do,” he said.

NSW SES has issued a strong warning to more than 8000 people in Forbes to prepare to leave their homes in the next 30 hours, as the threat of the Lachlan River breaking its banks looms.

“The situation is likely to change and it can escalate quickly,” the SES warning read.

Originally published as Authorities going door-to-door in Forbes as Lachlan River predicted to rise to 10.65m