Authorities advised thousands of residents to leave their homes due to a flood in Sydney, Australia last Monday, July 4. There have been eighteen evacuation orders on the western side of the city, with more expected. Stephanie Cook, the New South Wales emergency services minister, says, “This is a life-threatening emergency.” In March, severe flooding in Australia affected many people, mostly in NSW. Ms. Cooke told the media that “we face multiple dangers,” including flash flooding, riverine flooding, and coastal erosion. The Bureau of Meteorology said that some places could get up to three hundred fifty millimeters of rain, which would put a known river in danger. Sydney’s primary dam began overflowing overnight, causing further concern. Ms. Cooke warned people to “be prepared to evacuate at short notice” because the situation was “rapidly evolving.”

She said emergency services had carried out eighty-three flood rescues in twenty-four hours. “It shows that people aren’t heeding our advice,” Ms. Cooke said. “We will continue to issue flood advice.” “Please don’t travel unless absolutely necessary,” Climate change and La Niña may have exacerbated the flooding emergency. La Niña occurs when strong winds blow warm Pacific Ocean surface waters from South America to Indonesia. When it is absent, the temperature of the water rises. The likelihood of rain, cyclones, and daytime temperatures that are lower in Australia increases when it is present.