Days of extreme rainfall have swamped large areas of Australia, especially in the state of New South Wales. Hundreds of people have been rescued, tens of thousands have been evacuated, and at least two deaths have been reported so far. As the weather system begins to move away, recovery efforts are now starting in some of the dozens of communities that were declared disaster zones. Collected below are images of the widespread damage caused by this once-in-a-generation flooding event.
Australians Face Worst Flooding in Decades
Hints:
View this page full screen.
Skip to the next and previous photo by typing j/k or ←/→.
-
![Several vehicles sit on a small square patch of dry land, surrounded by floodwater.]()
Read moreFlood damage, visible from the air, above the Windsor area of greater Sydney on March 24, 2021 #
Lukas Coch / AFP / Getty -
-
![A wide view of flooded low-lying neighborhoods, with the Sydney skyline visible in the distance]()
Read moreFloods are seen at dawn from the Hawkesbury River, with the Sydney skyline in the distance, on March 24, 2021, above Kurrajong Heights, Australia. #
Mark Evans / Getty -
![Floodwater overruns a dock area.]()
Read moreThe Parramatta ferry wharf overflows and floods due to continuous and heavy rain on March 20, 2021, in Sydney. #
Matt Blyth / Getty -
![Several rescue workers carry a young child wearing a flotation device.]()
Read moreA child is carried to safety by a State Emergency Service member after a Marine rescue boat rescuing a family from rising floodwaters capsized in strong currents in the suburb of Sackville North, in Sydney, on March 23, 2021. #
Loren Elliott / Reuters -
-
![Several rescue workers walk in waist-deep water, pulling a person along in an inflatable raft.]()
Read moreA State Emergency Service rescue team uses an inflatable raft to bring a resident from a flooded home to safety in Sydney on March 21, 2021. #
Loren Elliott / Reuters -
![A man carries a large emu through floodwaters.]()
Read morePaul Zammit carries Gookie, his pet emu, after rescuing her from floodwater in Windsor, northwest of Sydney, on March 23, 2021. #
Rick Rycroft / AP -
![An aerial view of flooding in a residential area]()
Read moreAn aerial view of flooding in the Windsor and Pitt Town areas of greater Sydney, along the Hawkesbury River, on March 24, 2021 #
Lukas Coch / AFP / Getty -
-
![Several cows hang out on a dry patch of meadow as one cow wades in the floodwater.]()
Read moreCows are seen in and near floodwaters on March 24, 2021, in Singleton, Australia. #
Jenny Evans / Getty -
![The roof of a single building is seen above floodwater.]()
Read moreThe roof of a structure is visible as floodwater covers large areas northwest of Sydney on March 24, 2021. #
Lukas Coch / AP -
![A mostly submerged stop sign is seen in a flooded intersection.]()
Read moreStreet signs are seen partially submerged under rising floodwaters along the Hawkesbury River on March 24, 2021, in Sydney. #
Lisa Maree Williams / Getty -
-
![A man drinks from a bottle as he paddles a small kayak on a flooded street.]()
Read moreA man paddles along a street affected by the flood on March 23, 2021, in Windsor. #
Flavio Brancaleone / Getty -
![A bride and groom, dressed for their wedding, kiss while standing on a flooded road.]()
Read moreA stranded bride and groom, rescued by helicopter to get them to the church on time, kiss in front of a flooded bridge that blocked their five-minute drive into town, in Port Macquarie, Australia, in this picture obtained from social media, dated March 20, 2021. #
Amanda Hibbard, Kate Fotheringha via Reuters -
![Kids and dogs play in shallow floodwater over grass.]()
Read moreKids play in the rain on a flooded green space in North Manly, Sydney, on March 20, 2021. #
Lee Hulsman / Getty -
-
![Several people carry crates of food to waiting boats.]()
Read morePeople load a State Emergency Service boat with food to be transported to a stranded community no longer accessible by road after days of heavy rain resulted in severe flooding in western Sydney, on March 24, 2021. #
Loren Elliott / Reuters -
![A veterinarian carries an injured echidna inside a clinic.]()
Read moreBree Talbot, head veterinarian, attends to an echidna in the Byron Bay Mobile Wildlife Hospital. The echidna was found injured beside a road after escaping to higher ground after heavy rain on March 24, 2021, in Byron Bay, Australia. #
James D. Morgan / Getty -
![A veterinarian holds a cockatoo wrapped in a towel.]()
Read moreAn Australian galah, also known as the pink-and-gray cockatoo, is attended to in the Byron Bay Mobile Wildlife Hospital, after being found injured on the ground after heavy rain in Byron Bay on March 24, 2021. #
James D. Morgan / Getty -
-
![A flooded area sports several signs, the closest reading "Caution, snakes sighted in area."]()
Read moreA flooded reserve is seen in Upper Colo on March 23, 2021, in Colo, Australia. #
Jenny Evans / Getty -
![People view flooded areas from inside a helicopter.]()
Read moreAustralian Prime Minister Scott Morrison inspects damage created by floodwaters from an Australian Army helicopter during a visit to flood-affected areas in and around Sydney on March 24, 2021. #
Lukas Coch / AFP / Getty -
![Oil slicks are visible in floodwaters that surround several buildings.]()
Read moreIn this drone photo, a property is surrounded by floodwaters in Londonderry, on the outskirts of Sydney, on March 23, 2021. #
Mark Baker / AP -
-
![Several rescuers carry people across a flooded area in a small inflatable raft.]()
Read moreA family from North Richmond is transported by rescue workers across the floodwater to visit their daughter in a hospital in the suburb of Richmond on March 23, 2021. #
Jaimi Joy / Reuters -
![People embrace as others are brought to shore.]()
Read moreNSW State Emergency Service members bring evacuees to dry land in the suburb of Windsor, northwest of Sydney, on March 24, 2021. #
Steven Saphore / Anadolu Agency / Getty -
![A boy wades at the edge of a broad floodplain.]()
Read moreA boy stands on the edge of the floodwaters in the suburb of McGraths Hill, as the state of New South Wales experiences widespread flooding and severe weather on March 24, 2021. #
Jaimi Joy / Reuters -
-
![A father carries his young child, both wrapped in Mylar emergency blankets.]()
Read moreA father and child receive medical attention after the Marine rescue boat that rescued them from rising floodwaters capsized in strong currents in the suburb of Sackville North, in Sydney, Australia, on March 23, 2021. #
Loren Elliott / Reuters
We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com.