Extreme rainfall has triggered a century flood in parts of Western Australia. Several towns in the Kimberley region, which is also popular with tourists from all over the world, are particularly affected. The community of Fitzroy Crossing was already cut off from the outside world today, and other locations may soon follow.
According to the emergency services, it will probably take a week before the town of 1,200 residents will be accessible again by land. “You only see such a flood once in a lifetime,” the AAP news agency quoted an eyewitness as saying. “People who have lived here a long time say they’ve never seen anything like it.”
Groceries flown in
The nearby Great Northern Highway, which connects the metropolis of Perth to the northern port city of Wyndham, is impassable in both directions. Many residents were flown to the town of Broome by helicopter. Helicopters brought food for those who remained, since the village’s supermarket was also under water.
The Region’s Minister for Emergency Services, Stephen Dawson, said the situation was dangerous and changing. “We haven’t seen rain like this for at least 100 years,” he explained. “It’s shocking how high the water is.”
Wildlife is also endangered
Meteorologist James Ashley made the extent clear: The amount of water that currently flows down the Fitzroy River per day is the same as the metropolis of Perth will consume in 20 years.
Not only people were in danger, but also the animal world: 9News showed how kangaroos and cows tried to get to safety from the floods. Wallabies fled to house porches to save their lives.
