Thousands of people across Australia's southeast were asked to evacuate their homes on Friday (October 14), including some in Melbourne's west, after two days of incessant rains triggered flash flooding and fast-moving waters burst riverbanks, Reuters reports.
Large parts of Victoria state, southern New South Wales and the northern regions of the island state of Tasmania were pounded by an intense weather system with some taking more than a month's worth of rain since late Wednesday (October 12), officials said.
Many rivers in Victoria, including the Maribyrnong in Melbourne's west and the Goulburn further north, reached major flood levels, prompting the night time evacuation of residents.
Though heavy rains are expected to ease from late Friday, flooding could continue through the weekend, officials said. Devastating floods have repeatedly struck Australia's east coast since early last year because of a multi-year La Nina weather phenomenon, which brings more rain.
