The Hawkesbury and Lower Nepean Rivers may have minor flooding. Warragamba Dam is expected to begin spilling on Tuesday.
“The situation is being actively monitored and updated flood watches and warnings will be issued where necessary over the coming days,” a statement from the Bureau said.
A severe weather warning has been issued for the state’s north and Mid North Coast on Monday, with six-hour rainfall totals of up to 300 millimetres and “life-threatening flash flooding” possible over the next two days.
The rainfall is set to peak in Lismore on Monday evening and is only expected to ease up late on Tuesday afternoon.
The Wilsons River flows through the centre of the main town in Lismore on Monday.Credit:Getty Images
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Jonathan How said even then, showers will still hang around the area until the end of the week. The Northern Rivers has already been hit by between 100mm and 200mm over the weekend.
In south-east Queensland, a NSW man travelling for his pet moving business died and another is missing in floodwater amid severe thunderstorms and heavy rainfall afflicting the region.
“These soils are just so wet there hasn’t really been any capacity for the trees and the grass and scrubs to absorb anything so it just all becomes runoff, and that’s why we have seen these really rapid creek rises and flash flooding across the region,” he said.
Mr How said the current weather system is similar to that which northern NSW experienced earlier in the month but said it is “not as long-lasting”.
The currently severe weather warning current extends from Tweeds Heads all the way down to Port Macquarie and also includes Murwillumbah, Byron Bay, Lismore, Grafton, Coffs Harbour and Kempsey.
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“There is a lot of anxiety and a lot of nervousness among the community, so our top advice is to follow the advice of the SES. There’ll be busily working to give advice to local residents.”
SES Spokesperson Greg Nash said extra volunteers and were ready to be deployed instantly.
The SES has a new base in Grafton where hundreds of volunteers have been sent for the coming days.
“As before we are warning people around the rivers systems, listen and be prepared to go early if they need to,” he said.
“Due to how wet the ground is at the moment, floods in the next couple of days may be experienced differently to previous times. If they can, people should be prepared to go.”
As for Sydney, rain is set to fall every day this week with the wettest being Tuesday where up to 45 millimetres of rain is forecast.
The Bureau has also warned the harbour city is likely to see strong winds towards the end of the week, causing hazardous surf conditions.
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‘So exhausted’: Parts of Lismore ordered to evacuate again as heavy rain batters NSW
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