The cyclone that tore through Australia’s northeast this week brought fresh misery to people in the south yesterday, causing flash flooding in Melbourne even as residents in distant towns returned to ruined homes.
The tropical system that was Cyclone Yasi, which tore through the northeast earlier this week, was still churning over central Australia and making a series of thunderstorms over Melbourne and other large towns in Victoria much worse, the Bureau of Meteorology said.
More than 175mm of rain fell in just a few hours overnight on Friday in some Melbourne neighborhoods and winds gusting to 130kph knocked down trees, the bureau said.
Drains were overwhelmed, causing flash flooding that covered streets and swamped some homes. The State Emergency Service said 84 people were rescued from cars that stalled in flooded streets, or from inundated properties.
Police and army troops moved through the storm-ravaged coastal town of Tully Heads yesterday, going door-to-door accounting for residents.
Officials spray painted “No Go” as a warning on the worst-hit homes. A few houses were reduced to rubble. A layer of brown sludge covered the ground, leaving a sickening smell wafting throughout the community.
Residents spent the day sifting through the wreckage and dragging people’s possessions back to their owners.
“I’ll take my container back when you’re done with it!” Ian Barrett, 55, joked to his neighbor as his huge blue shipping container lay in the man’s yard, about 90m from where it once stood.
Barrett’s beachfront house was still standing, but was nearly empty inside. The waves ripped everything from the home: furniture, toys and appliances.
“We’re not gonna rebuild here,” Barrett said. “We’d never be able to go to sleep again at night.”
Meanwhile, Sydney residents sweltered through a sixth straight day of more than 30°C heat, the longest stretch on record.
The weather bureau said temperatures had been in the mid- to high-30s since last Sunday, the most enduring heatwave since recordkeeping began 153 years ago.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS