Disasters & Accidents

Australian PM visits areas affected by floods

Sydney, Australia, Oct 16 (EFE).- Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday visited areas affected by floods, in which at least one person has died, and announced financial assistance for the victims.

“At times of crisis, Australians want all levels of government to work together – and that’s what we’re doing,” Albanese, who traveled to flooded areas in the southeastern state of Victoria, said on Twitter.

Albanese, who was accompanied by the head of the Victorian government, Daniel Andrews, flew by helicopter over some of the affected areas.

Authorities announced on Saturday that a 71-year-old person had died as a result of the floods in Rochester, a town north of Melbourne.

“Financial support is available for residents in 44 local areas across NSW (New South Wales), Victoria and Tasmania affected by floods,” the Australian president added.

According to a government statement, the aid consists of 1,000 Australian dollars (about $619) for each adult and 400 Australian dollars for each child, while evacuation centers have been set up and soldiers have been deployed.

In recent days, torrential rains, combined with strong winds, have flooded several roads, downed trees and left thousands of homes without electricity.

The powerful storm is affecting the states of Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmania, where authorities have issued warnings of the danger of overflowing rivers and lakes and have ordered localized evacuations.

The east coast of Australia, which is suffering the impact for the third consecutive year of the La Niña phenomenon, has been hit by two heavy floods since January that caused the deaths of about 20 people and millions of dollars in material damage. EFE

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