Â鶹´«Ã½

Climate and Environment

    • Thousands evacuate in worst Australian floods in a decade

    People wade through flood water as they relocate in Chinderah, Australia, Tuesday, March 1, 2022. (Jason O'Brien/AAP Image via AP) People wade through flood water as they relocate in Chinderah, Australia, Tuesday, March 1, 2022. (Jason O'Brien/AAP Image via AP)
    Share
    BRISBANE, Australia -

    Tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate their homes by Tuesday and hundreds of thousands more were told to prepare to flee as parts of Australia’s southeast coast were inundated by the worst flooding in more than a decade. At least 10 people have died.

    New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet said there had been 1,000 rescues in the state by Tuesday and more than 6,000 calls for authorities to 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.

    The body of a woman in her 80s was found by a neighbour in her Lismore home on Tuesday, a police statement said. There were no details of how she died.

    Dozens of cars were trapped on a bridge in the nearby town of Woodburn over Monday night with both the bridge’s approaches submerged. Up to 50 people were rescued from the bridge early Tuesday, officials said.

    “We had no capabilities to get them off in the dark so we just had to make sure that they bunkered down and we went in this morning and got them all out,†Woodburn State Emergency Services Commander Ashley Slapp said.

    The floodwaters were moving south into New South Wales from Queensland state in the worst disaster in the region since what was described as a once-in-a-century event in 2011.

    Perrottet said 40,000 people had been ordered to evacuate, while 300,000 others had been placed under evacuation warnings.

    Government meteorologist Jonathan Howe described the recent rainfall in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland as “astronomical.â€

    Nine of the 10 deaths reported so far were in Queensland. A 76-year-old man who disappeared with his vehicle in floodwaters northwest of Brisbane on Sunday has since been confirmed dead.

    Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said another man in his 70s remained missing after falling from his moored yacht in the state capital Brisbane into a swollen river on Saturday.

    The cleanup was underway in Brisbane, Australia’s third most populous city, despite more storms forecast for later in the week. Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner urged people to register for the “Mud Army,†as the thousands of volunteers who mobilized to help out after the 2011 floods were dubbed.

    Thousands of homes in Brisbane were inundated Sunday, many by swollen creeks in suburbs such as Ashgrove, where Kelvin Barfoot had to evacuate with members of his family, including his 99-year-old mother-in-law, Mina Baker, in a State Emergency Service rescue boat.

    The family moved back into the top floor of their two-story home and started removing damaged furniture and electrical appliances that had been covered by almost 1.5 metres (5 feet) of water.

    “We thought we were pretty well prepared for it,†said Barfoot, who leads a volunteer bush care group which has tallied more than 4,000 hours of planting and weeding along Enoggera Creek over the past six years. “Just unbelievable. When it did start coming in, it went up very quick.â€

    Barfoot said his daughter and her husband swam to the house to help with the rescue after notifying emergency services that her grandmother — who moved to Australia from Christchurch, New Zealand, after earthquakes there in 2011 killed 185 people — needed to get out.

    “We were pretty much stuck upstairs at that point,†Barfoot said. “That was quite traumatic for my mother-in-law — we got her out (of New Zealand) after the earthquakes, so it was all a bit reminiscent of that for her.

    “Now she’s back home. She wanted to come home. She was a bit traumatized, but she’s tough. She came down and asked me if there was anything to do to help!â€

    Schrinner said the six-day rainfall in downtown Brisbane — 792.8 millimetres (31.2 inches) through Monday morning — was significantly higher than the previous record of 655.8 millimetres (25.8 inches) set when flooding devastated the city in 1974.

    Rick Threlfall and Steve Hadley, meteorologists who moved from England to Australia and have been living in Newmarket, Brisbane, for almost a decade, were in the process of sandbagging the ground floor of their home but couldn’t finish in time to beat the rapidly rising flood.

    “Back in the U.K., we do weather warnings for 20 millimetres (1 inch) of rain,†Threlfall said. “My weather gauge here has recorded 950 millimetres (37 inches) in three days. Brisbane’s average is about 1,200 millimetres (47 inches) for the year, so we’ve pretty much had 80% of annual rainfall in three days.

    “No real escaping the water, I guess.â€

    The extraordinary rainfall comes as the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reported this week that vast swathes of Australia have already lost 20% of its rainfall and the country’s fire risk has gone beyond worst-case scenarios developed just a few years ago.

    Australia’s hottest and driest year on record was 2019, which ended with devastating wildfires across southeast Australia. The fires directly killed 33 people and another 400 people were killed by the smoke.

    The fires also destroyed more than 3,000 homes and razed 19 million hectares (47 million acres) of farmland and forests.

    But two La Nina weather patterns have since brought above-average rainfall to the same regions.

    Lesley Hughes, an Australian academic and lead author of the UN IPCC assessment reports in 2007 and 2015, said climate change was expected to overwhelm government systems such as flood responses.

    “We can see that our emergency services are struggling already to cope with the floods in northern New South Wales with people stranded on roofs without food for more than 24 hours,†Hughes said.

    ___

    McGuirk reported from Canberra.

    CTVNews.ca Top Stories

    Two nephews of the beloved Harry R. Hamilton share stories about his life and legacy.

    The union representing some 1,200 dockworkers at the Port of Montreal has overwhelmingly rejected a deal with their employers association.

    Canada

    • A team of tornado experts is heading to Fergus, Ont. after a storm ripped through the area Sunday night.

    • Two nephews of the beloved Harry R. Hamilton share stories about his life and legacy.

    • The union representing some 1,200 dockworkers at the Port of Montreal has overwhelmingly rejected a deal with their employers association.

    • A man who was critically injured in a police-involved shooting in Hamilton late Sunday afternoon has died in hospital, says the province’s police watchdog.

    World

    Politics

    • Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.

    • Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced voters in Cloverdale—Langley City will pick their next member of Parliament on Dec. 16.

    Health

    Sci-Tech

    Entertainment

    Business

    Lifestyle

    Sports

    Autos

    Local Spotlight

    For the second year in a row, the ‘Gift-a-Family’ campaign is hoping to make the holidays happier for children and families in need throughout Barrie.

    Some of the most prolific photographers behind CTV Skywatch Pics of the Day use the medium for fun, therapy, and connection.

    A young family from Codroy Valley, N.L., is happy to be on land and resting with their newborn daughter, Miley, after an overwhelming, yet exciting experience at sea.

    As Connor Nijsse prepared to remove some old drywall during his garage renovation, he feared the worst.

    A group of women in Chester, N.S., has been busy on the weekends making quilts – not for themselves, but for those in need.

    A Vancouver artist whose streetside singing led to a chance encounter with one of the world's biggest musicians is encouraging aspiring performers to try their hand at busking.

    Ten-thousand hand-knit poppies were taken from the Sanctuary Arts Centre and displayed on the fence surrounding the Dartmouth Cenotaph on Monday.

    A Vancouver man is saying goodbye to his nine-to-five and embarking on a road trip from the Canadian Arctic to Antarctica.

    • Thousands of people are expected to gather in downtown Vancouver on Monday to observe the city’s 100th Remembrance Day ceremony.

    • Weather watchers were treated to an exceptionally rare display on Friday evening as rare cloud formations filled Vancouver skies.

    • Toronto is expected to see an economic boost to the tune of nearly $300 million thanks to Taylor Swift’s upcoming Eras Tour, which will be making a stop in Canada’s largest city for a six-show run later this month.

    • One man was transported to hospital early Monday morning after a stabbing in the northwest end of the city, Toronto police say.

    • Calgarians will be observing Remembrance Day at a number of different ceremonies across the city, including at the Hangar Flight Museum.

    • A home in the northeast Calgary community of Saddle Ridge was damaged in a fire on Sunday.

    • WEATHER

      WEATHER

      Conditions were warm early Monday and expected to remain that way for most of the day.

    • WATCH LIVE

      WATCH LIVE

      CTVNewsOttawa.ca looks at Remembrance Day ceremonies in Ottawa.

    • After months of controversy surrounding a dog park in Ottawa's west end, a solution has been reached to divide the park in half.

    • With fewer interments and rising maintenance fees, the money for Canada's largest military cemetery will run out in three to four years.

    • Montreal Metro passengers can now flag a safety concern by texting a new phone number launched by the STM.

    • The employers association at the Port of Montreal locked out nearly 1,200 longshore workers, bringing a halt to traffic at the port.

    • LIVE @ 10:45 A.M. MT

      LIVE @ 10:45 A.M. MT

      Monday is Remembrance Day, a time to honour armed forces members who have died in the line of duty.

    • WEATHER

      WEATHER

      This is shaping up to be one of the warmest Remembrance Days in the past decade, at least, for temperatures.

    • Maritimers will stop Monday to remember those who have served, and continue to serve, in Canada's armed forces for Remembrance Day.

    • A Cape Breton senior recalls her life in German-occupied France, and her mother’s death, during the Second World War.

    • Thousand of people gathered at the Menin Gate in the Ypres, Belgium for Monday’s Remembrance Day Ceremony.

    • Remembrance Day is today, and a number of ceremonies are taking place around the province to honour those who gave their lives to serve our country.

    • A pillar in Canada’s history was honoured in Winnipeg Sunday afternoon, with thousands showing up to pay tribute to the life and legacy of the late Murray Sinclair.

    • Winnipeg police have identified two men involved in a stabbing incident earlier this week.

    • There will be two ceremonies taking place in Regina for Remembrance Day, hosted by the Royal Canadian Legion.

    • Regina author Valerie Crowther is celebrating the release of her book ‘War Letters: Linking Lives in the Second World War.’

    • It was a somber day at Mosaic Stadium as members of the Saskatchewan Roughriders officially cleaned out their stalls and closed the book on the 2024 season.

    • A team of tornado experts is heading to Fergus, Ont. after a storm ripped through the area Sunday night.

    • A man is facing an attempted murder charge after an attack at a bar in downtown Guelph.

    • People across Canada will pause to reflect Monday at Remembrance Day Ceremonies across the country.

    • Saskatchewan RCMP are searching for a suspect after a man was seriously injured in a farm-related incident in Montreal Lake.

    • It was a somber day at Mosaic Stadium as members of the Saskatchewan Roughriders officially cleaned out their stalls and closed the book on the 2024 season.

    • The Regina Rams claimed the Hardy Cup after a hard fought battle against the Saskatoon Huskies 19-14 on Saturday in the first all Saskatchewan U-Sports western conference final since 2002.

    • The events will start at 10:15 a.m. with a parade that forms up in front of the Delta London Armories, marches east on Dundas Street and turns north onto Waterloo Street to Dufferin Avenue, the west to the Cenotaph.

    • Emergency crews responded to the scene on Road 68/Highway 2 east of Thamesford around 7 p.m.

    • On Friday, the Sarnia Police Service (SPS) received a report of an alleged abduction in the area of Kathleen Avenue and Walnut Avenue.

    • A Barrie man is at the centre of an alleged $2.2 million stolen used car scheme.

    • Environment Canada issued a weather alert for Barrie, Collingwood and surrounding areas, alerting residents about the wicked winds that are expected to pick up to 80 kilometres per hour in the afternoon hours.

    • Barrie residents gathered on Monday to honour Canada’s veterans and pay tribute to those who served and sacrificed for the country.

    • WATCH LIVE

      WATCH LIVE

      Representatives of the Windsor Veterans Memorial Services Committee, military representatives, wreath bearers, government officials, and members of the public will attend the Cenotaph at City Hall Square for the outdoor service.

    • One person has been arrested after Chatham-Kent Police Service (CKPS) received multiple complaints about an alleged drunk driver.

    • More details have been released about a police investigation at the Ambassador Bridge that connects Windsor, Ont. and Detroit, MI.

    • Environment Canada says heavy rain and winds could cause power outages on Vancouver Island as an "intense" storm system is set to hit the B.C. coast Sunday.

    • Six deer were struck by vehicles in six different locations in a six-hour period on B.C. highways on Saturday, according to the transportation ministry.

    • The union for locked-out port workers in British Columbia says the BC Maritime Employers Association cut off talks in less than an hour Saturday, refusing to budge on a final offer that the union has so far rejected.

    • The emergency department at South Okanagan General Hospital in Oliver, B.C., will be closed for 31 hours this weekend, the second such closure in a week and the third since the start of November.

    • Police in Kamloops, B.C., are reminding parents and guardians to check their children's Halloween candy after receiving a report of a mother finding a razor blade in one of her daughter's treats.

    • More than two years after Alannah Brown and Douglas Barker were found dead north of Penticton, police are asking for help identifying a vehicle they believe was associated with the crime.

    • The Southern Alberta Recreation Association is officially announcing the Town of Taber as next year’s host for the Southern Alberta Summer Games.

    • The Lethbridge Hurricanes broke open a close game with three goals in the first two minutes of the third period as they defeated the Warriors 7-3 in a game played Friday night in Moose Jaw.

    • There might not a lot snow just yet, but many southern Albertans are still itching to get outdoors.

    • It was just days before the COVID-19 pandemic shut the world down when the Shaft Bottom Boys of Sudbury broke a world record for 'Deepest Concert Underground.' Now, more than four years later, a Timmins band is looking to take the title.

    • Police have arrested a 15-year-old in connection with a break-in and $50,000 in damage done to the Centennial Arena in Elliot Lake in September.

    • Mayors of the five largest cities in northern Ontario met in North Bay the last two days to discuss a range of critical issues impacting their cities and the region.

    N.L.

    Shopping Trends

    The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at Â鶹´«Ã½. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.

    Stay Connected
    Follow Â鶹´«Ã½