Flooding chaos a `natural disaster': [1 All-round Country Edition]
John Stapleton, Cathy Pryor, Elizabeth Colman. The Australian; Canberra, A.C.T. [Canberra, A.C.T] 19 Jan 2004: 4.
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TAMWORTH, Parry and Moree Plains shires were declared natural disaster zones by the NSW Government yesterday after four days of heavy rain and low-level flooding created chaos in the state's north.
Floods are expected to peak in the cotton town of Moree today. The town has been cut off from traffic. Additional State Emergency Service crews are travelling to Moree overnight to relieve volunteers working in the region since Friday.
Mayor of Tamworth James Treloar said the rain might have been creating chaos for campers but it was a welcome relief for theregion's farmers.
TAMWORTH, Parry and Moree Plains shires were declared natural disaster zones by the NSW Government yesterday after four days of heavy rain and low-level flooding created chaos in the state's north.
Local councils last night reported millions of dollars in damage to roads and bridges. There are fears across northern NSW that more rivers will burst their banks in coming days.
Floods are expected to peak in the cotton town of Moree today. The town has been cut off from traffic. Additional State Emergency Service crews are travelling to Moree overnight to relieve volunteers working in the region since Friday.
In Tamworth, 3000 campers, in town for the annual country music festival, were evacuated after heavy rains broke the banks of thePeel River and split the town in two.
"There were people running with their swags because the floods started to take their tents away," said Greg Tait, a member of thecountry music band The Backyard Rascals.
Mr Tait drove from his home in Broome, Western Australia, for the festival, but spent Friday night trying to keep his tent from collapsing in the rain.
At about 6.30am on Saturday rescue workers began ferrying campers to the local recreation centre where they remained last night "in high spirits", according to an SES spokesman.
Mayor of Tamworth James Treloar said the rain might have been creating chaos for campers but it was a welcome relief for theregion's farmers.
The task of relocating the campers during the festival had been difficult because most of the accommodation in the city was already full, Mr Treloar said.
Emergency operations continued last night as the swollen Peel continued its charge northwest.
"Each day we've had around 200 volunteers in the field, evacuating and rescuing trapped people, pumping, and sandbagging vulnerable buildings," the SES spokesman said.
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