Torrential rains that have been battering southeastern Australia for several days began to abate on Saturday, but the flooding they caused apparently killed one person, police said.
A 71-year-old man was “found dead in floodwaters in the backyard” of his property in Rochester, a small town north of Melbourne, local police said, adding that the exact circumstances of death were not yet known. have been determined.
In three states in southeastern Australia, floodwaters inundated cars and homes, with Melbourne’s suburbs among the hardest hit.
On Saturday, as the rains subsided, residents of the affected areas waded through muddy streets littered with all kinds of debris and wrecked cars.
“Potentially very, very dangerous”
Evacuation orders remain in effect for dozens of locations. “It’s serious, it’s potentially very, very dangerous,” Victoria Premier Dan Andrews warned.
Australia’s east coast has been hit for two years by repeated extreme weather events.
In March, the region suffered severe flooding that claimed 20 lives. And in July, heavy rains forced thousands of Sydney residents from their homes.
Australia is on the front lines of the consequences of climate change, with floods, bushfires, cyclones and droughts becoming more frequent and intense as the planet warms, scientists warn.
Source: BFM TV
