NSW braces for heavy rains and damaging winds as new trough approaches

A search is underway for a man believed missing in western NSW floodwaters and with swathes of the already drenched state poised to cop another deluge.

Police say the 63-year-old was last seen on a rural property on Lachlan Valley Way at Hillston around midday on Tuesday, when he told a friend he would return shortly.

Several hours later they were notified he was missing and began searching.

Local police, PolAir, Police Rescue, the SES and paramedics failed to find any trace of the man on Wednesday and the search is now focused on the Riverina farm and along the Lachlan River.

Police on Tuesday found the body of a man in his submerged car in the state’s central west.

There are 70 flood warnings current and the Bureau of Meteorology says a trough from the west will likely bring thunderstorms to the central and southern inland on Thursday and Friday.

Thursday will deliver the heaviest rain, and damaging afternoon winds above 90 km/h are forecast in alpine areas.

The BoM is warning of renewed flooding for parts of the central west and southwest from Friday, with rivers experiencing ongoing flooding due to rainfall in recent months.

Catchments are very wet and most dams are at or near capacity.

BoM senior forecaster Jonathan How said on Thursday Broken Hill in the far west had copped an overnight deluge. “They’ve now set a new record for the highest October daily rainfall record - more than 50mm overnight,” he told ABC TV.

Sunny skies should provide a brief weekend reprieve but many places will remain in flood and more severe weather is tipped to hit on Wednesday and Thursday, bringing heavy falls to saturated catchments.

In the meantime, residents of central western Forbes are filling petrol tanks and buying groceries in preparation for the inundation.

The Lachlan River at the Iron Bridge, near housing in the town’s southeast, is expected to exceed the major flood level of 10.55 metres on Thursday.

State Emergency Service volunteers have been filling sandbags and handing out thousands to residents.

Local commander Rocky Walshaw said it was hard to predict how bad the flooding would be with creeks already swollen.

“Every flood is different but this one is going to be here for a long time” he told AAP.

“This peak is going to stay here for five days but when the rain falls again, it’s about where that’s going to fall.”

Mr Walshaw urged locals to keep up to date with the weather, water levels and road closures.

“What happened here in the last floods was the people who didn’t talk to their neighbours were getting worried and panicking,” he said.

“We’ve got a saying here: ‘I’d rather be looking at them, than looking for them’.”

Authorities have decreased Wyangala Dam water releases from 45,000 megalitres per day to 30,000 megalitres.

AAP

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