“The tragedy is that people are still taking risks in order to try and get through,” Queensland police inspector Lee Jeffries told local media.
More than 360 mm (14 inches) of rain fell when the storm hit on Friday evening, most of it falling in a three hour period.
The Bureau of Meteorology said that the low pressure system was contracting as it moved south into northern New South Wales early on Saturday but forecast damaging winds, heavy rainfall and large swells for the mid north coast and Central Hunter region of the state.
The low follows last week’s cyclone-strength storm that battered Australia’s east coast over three days, killing eight, cutting road and rail links, closing shipping ports and causing millions of dollars of damage to Sydney and other cities.
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