About 500,000 people in Sydney were told on Thursday to either leave or get ready to flee floodwaters as torrential rain lashed a long stretch of Australia's east coast.
The death toll rose to 10 when a woman in her 80s was found dead inside a flooded property, police said.
Steph Cooke, a minister in the New South Wales government, issued a warning about “treacherous weather” arriving in the next 24 hours.
The region's State Emergency Service issued evacuation orders to 200,000 residents; evacuation warnings have been sent to another 300,000.
Earlier in the week, tens of thousands of people were ordered to leave their homes by Tuesday. Hundreds of thousands more were told to prepare to flee as parts of Australia’s south-east coast were inundated by the worst flooding in more than a decade.
Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology issued a warning about life-threatening flash floods and winds with gusts in excess of 90 kilometres an hour.
Major flooding was expected along several rivers in and around Sydney.
New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet urged residents to take the evacuation orders seriously.
“We do believe that things will get worse before they get better,” Mr Perrottet said.
He said 1,000 rescues had been carried out in the state by Tuesday in response to more than 6,000 calls for help.
Scores of residents, some with pets, spent hours trapped on their roofs by a fast-rising river in the town of Lismore in the state’s north.
Minor flood warnings were also issued for coastal communities as far as 200km south of Sydney.
Floodwaters were also rising in Brisbane, Australia’s third-most populous city, 730km north of Sydney, as severe thunderstorms struck.
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Vehicles stuck on a street as floodwaters submerge the city of Gympie, in Australia. Getty Images -
People play on a waterlogged street in Maroochydore, Queensland state. Getty Images -
Australia's Queensland state and other regions have experienced several days of intense rain, with flooding expected to continue. Getty Images -
A father and his daughter watch people take to floodwaters in their boat in Logan, south of Brisbane. Getty Images -
People walk in the rain past a sign warning the public about a road closure due to flooding, in Logan. EPA -
A partially submerged house in Ipswich, Queensland. EPA -
A car is towed from a flooded road in Oxley. EPA -
A car stuck in floodwaters near Lismore, New South Wales. EPA -
A woman takes pictures of the overflowing Parramatta river in Sydney. AFP -
A lorry moves through a flooded road in Brisbane, Australia. AFP -
Intense rains and flash floods have affected Brisbane and other parts of the region. AFP -
Residents walk past a flooded creek in the Cannon Hill suburb of Brisbane. AFP -
A closed road sign at the flooded Bulimba Creek at Cannon Hill. AFP -
Floods inundate roads in Rocklea, Brisbane. AFP -
Resident Jai Connors fishes in rising floodwater from the swollen Bremer river in front of his home in the city of Ipswich. AFP -
A man looks at floodwaters from the balcony of his home in West Ipswich. AFP -
Flash floods have cut off many roads in the region. Emergency services have been carrying out rescues in various areas. AFP -
A resident watches floodwaters from his house in Ipswich. EPA -
People walk in rain near a flooded road in the city of Logan. EPA -
Residents look at floodwaters from the balcony of their home in West Ipswich. AFP
Hailstones 5 to 6 centimetres wide pounded the town of Inglewood, 270km south-west of Brisbane, early on Thursday, the Bureau of Meteorology said.
Heavy rainfall hit Queensland last week, leading Brisbane's mayor to describe the downpour as a “rain bomb". The weather system caused the Brisbane River to burst its banks, affecting about 15,000 homes.
The flooding has claimed 14 lives in Queensland and New South Wales since February 22, when the body of a 63-year-old woman was recovered from a submerged car at Belli Park, north of Brisbane.
Several Brisbane suburbs remain affected after the river that snakes through the city centre flooded on Monday.
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Assistant Commissioner John Cawcutt said hundreds of people were calling for help in Brisbane and its surrounds, with heavy rain causing flash flooding.
“We’ve got high winds and of course we’ve got the potential for flash flooding because of the already-sodden ground out there,” Mr Cawcutt told Nine Network TV.
He described the dangerous weather as an “enormous event”.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Laura Boekel said thunderstorms had brought the chance of more flooding, extending 450km north from Brisbane to Bundaberg during the next day or two.
“This is a very dangerous and potentially life-threatening situation for south-east Queensland,” Ms Boekel said.
