Australia Faces Unseasonal Winter Floods... 32,000 Displaced Victims

[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] Unusually heavy rain has fallen continuously in the eastern region of Australia, which is experiencing winter, causing some rivers to overflow and tens of thousands of people to become displaced.

According to Australia's ABC News on the 4th, Dominic Perrottet, Premier of New South Wales (NSW), stated, "There are 32,000 displaced people across the state."

He also announced that 64 evacuation alerts have been issued throughout NSW, and 100 military personnel have been deployed to assist residents with evacuation.

According to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, some areas between Newcastle north of Sydney and Wollongong south of Sydney received over 1 meter of rain in the past 24 hours, with some places experiencing more than 1.5 meters. This amount is comparable to the annual average rainfall of the coastal areas of New South Wales.

Australian authorities reported that in recent years, heavy rains have repeatedly fallen along the eastern coast of Australia, causing river water levels to approach their maximum, raising the possibility of flooding and significant concerns about landslides.

In fact, the Warragamba Dam, Sydney's main water source, began to overflow starting the previous day. Consequently, Sydney authorities ordered residents in vulnerable areas to evacuate before they become trapped.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology explained that the recent floods are due to the La Ni?a phenomenon, which has persisted in the Pacific Ocean for several years.

La Ni?a is a phenomenon opposite to El Ni?o, where sea surface temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific abnormally drop, causing anomalies in atmospheric circulation over the western Pacific. This results in floods in Southeast Asia and Australia, and droughts in South America.