NSW floods as it happened: River rising rapidly upstream of Liverpool; tugboat crew lauded for cargo ship rescue near Sydney

That is where we will leave our live coverage of the NSW floods for Monday. Thanks for following along.

We will be back tomorrow with more live updates, but here’s a wrap of today’s major events:

• A three-person tugboat crew saved the state from disaster on Monday, after a stricken cargo ship carrying hundreds of tonnes of fuel oil lost its engine in a storm and drifted powerlessly towards the cliffs of the Royal National Park.
• Emergency services have turned their attention to Sydney’s south-west as surging waters threatened homes along the Georges and Woronora rivers on Monday evening. Rapid river level rises were observed upstream of Liverpool, prompting the Bureau of Meteorology to issue a flood warning for Liverpool and Milperra, and the NSW SES to immediately order residents in low-lying parts of the area to evacuate.
• Australian Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt says the floods affecting parts of Sydney will not be declared a national emergency at this stage. A declaration at state level would trigger federal and state disaster support measures including payments for affected households and infrastructure repairs.
• The Bureau of Meteorology updated its severe weather warning for the central NSW coast to include damaging winds and heavy rainfall. Major flood warnings are in place for the Hawkesbury and Nepean rivers.

Michael Greenway and his family evacuate their home at Richards. It’s likely they won’t return home after this flooding event, he says.Credit: Brook Mitchell

And if you’re searching for something to read this evening, consider this story by environment reporter Laura Chung, and photographers Brook Mitchell and James Brickwood: flood-affected residents ponder future after third flooding event in a year.

We will continue our live coverage in the morning. Until then, stay safe and stay across any emergency updates for your area.

Good night.

More flood evacuation orders have been issued for the Liverpool area.

The NSW SES is ordering residents in the following areas to evacuate by 9pm:

• Warwick Farm Racecourse
• Parts of Chipping Norton: Western side of Epsom Road, between Westbury Street and Childs Road.
• Parts of Georges Hall: Beatty Parade
• Parts of Moorebank: Eastern side of Regent Crescent, Eastern side of Iraking Avenue
• Parts of Lansvale: Willow Close

If you live in these areas, visit the NSW SES website for information about what to do next. For emergency help in floods and storms, call the NSW SES on 132 500. In life-threatening situations call triple zero (000) immediately.

A three-person tugboat crew saved the state from disaster on Monday, after a stricken cargo ship carrying hundreds of tonnes of fuel oil lost its engine in a storm and drifted powerlessly towards the cliffs of the Royal National Park.

Incident controller John Finch, of the Ports Authority of NSW, lauded the tug crews as “unsung heroes” after they pulled the stranded Portland Bay and its 21-strong crew out of the shallows, averting what could have been a major ecological disaster off Australia’s first national park.

Three tugboats tow the MV Portland Bay to safety.Credit: James Brickwood

“They have gone above and beyond the call here, battling swells of up to eight to nine metres. They lost a couple of lines but kept going,” he said.

“They averted a crisis. We train for this scenario, and then it arrives. They have done the job.”

The Port Authority of NSW said the ship would be towed out to a distance of 12 nautical miles from the coast, where the crew would attempt repairs overnight. It hoped to reach the 12 nautical mile line at around 10pm.

Read the full story by Ben Cubby here.

Emergency services have turned their attention to Sydney’s south-west as surging waters threaten homes along the Georges and Woronora rivers on Monday evening.

Rapid river level rises were observed upstream of Liverpool, prompting the Bureau of Meteorology to issue a flood warning for Liverpool and Milperra, and the NSW SES to immediately order residents in low-lying parts of the area to evacuate.

Those in the following parts of Woronora were ordered to evacuate by 7pm: Harrison Avenue, McKinley Avenue, Washington Drive, Wilson Place.

Low-lying parts on the eastern side of the river are being told to evacuate immediately: Liffey Place, Thames Street and Prince Edward Park Road North of the bridge at the RSL.

Those in the following parts of Bonnet Bay are being ordered to evacuate by 8pm: Johnson Close, Arthur Place and properties on Lower Washington Drive backing on to Johnson Close.

The Bureau has a major flood warning in place for the Georges and Woronora rivers in place, and many creeks in the area are also overflowing.

Fire and Rescue NSW are responding to numerous incidents including potential flooding at an aged care facility in Prestons, south of Liverpool, after water was reported seeping through the building walls. Fire crews are no longer attending the facility and residents were not evacuated, a spokesperson said.

If you live in these areas, visit the NSW SES website for information about what to do next. For emergency help in floods and storms, call the NSW SES on 132 500. In life-threatening situations call triple zero (000) immediately.

The state’s disaster management agency is urging people thinking of donating to communities affected by floods to support existing charities rather than give away unwanted items.

Resilience NSW said the best way to support affected communities is to use one of many existing services.

Mullumbimby local volunteers with donated goods during the Northern Rivers floods in March.Credit: Janie Barrett

“These communities simply don’t have the space, time and resources to effectively manage unrequested donations,” they said on Twitter.

The not-for-profit Givit said potential donors can fund requested items through its flood donation portal, and urged people not to drop physical donations into flood-affected areas.

The Bureau of Meteorology has updated its flood warnings and river levels:

• Major flooding is occurring along the Hawkesbury River at North Richmond where river levels peaked at 14.18 m early Monday morning. The river is currently at 14.03 m and steady, and may remain around 14 metres until Tuesday morning.
• At Windsor, the Hawkesbury may reach 13.30 m tonight and into Tuesday, with major flooding.
  The river reached 12.93 m in March 2021 and 13.79 m March 2022. Major flooding may also develop along the Hawkesbury at Sackville, Lower Portland and Wisemans Ferry at levels lower than March 2022.
• Major flooding is continuing along the Upper Nepean River at Menangle where river levels peaked at 16.61 m on Sunday morning.
• The Nepean River at Wallacia Weir peaked at 13.84m early Monday morning. It also peaked at Penrith and is currently at 7.77 m and falling, with minor flooding.
• Levels are steady along the Colo River, but further rises are possible with moderate flooding predicted.

Rescue crews appear to have begun towing the MV Portland Bay to deeper water.

The vessel is being towed about 20 kilometres east to where it can be repaired, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said.

Three tugboats tow the MV Portland Bay to safety.Credit: James Brickwood

The ship is believed to be carrying about 1000 tonnes of oil.

Our photographers have been filing some incredible pictures throughout the day, braving floods, driving rains and severe winds.

Here’s a selection of what they’ve captured today.

Australian Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt says the floods affecting parts of Sydney will not be declared a national emergency at this stage.

Watt told ABC’s Afternoon Briefing the floods weren’t severe enough to invoke a national emergency declaration, but NSW authorities were likely to invoke a natural disaster.

SES workers from the Mount Druitt unit in the suburb of Richards.Credit: Brook Mitchell

A declaration at state level would trigger federal and state disaster support measures including payments for affected households and infrastructure repairs.

“At this stage, the advice is this particular disaster, while severe, does not reach the level of the threshold required to invoke a national emergency declaration,” he said.

“Having said that, it is likely the NSW government will declare this flood as a disaster from a NSW perspective.”

Of the 23 local government areas reporting water surges today, 20 were flooded last year and 10 were affected by the Black Summer bushfires, he said.

Watt said the federal government had committed 200 Australian Defence Force personnel, as well as two helicopters, to assist NSW but so far, the state had not requested additional support.

“It is possible further defence personnel may be requested to assist with the clean-up task. We’re not quite at that point yet,” he said.

“I’ve made very clear to the NSW government that we stand ready to assist them in any way necessary.”

Weatherzone meteorologist Andrew Schmidt said conditions are expected to ease over the state overnight, but some models show between 50 and 100 mm of rain impacting the Central Coast and Newcastle regions on Tuesday.

“There is a little bit of uncertainty - that’s the worst-case scenario,” he said.

A dangerous day to be an umbrella.Credit: Steven Siewert

“Showers are almost guaranteed for flood-affected areas, but it will be much less intense [than what the state has seen over the last 72 hours].”

As the east coast low moves off the coast, Schmidt said it is expected to merge with a second east coast low and push towards New Zealand.

However, the rain will remain over much of the state for the rest of the week as a low-pressure system in the Tasman Sea pushes more moisture along the east coast.