One dead in Australia floods as authorities order evacuation

SYDNEY: One woman died in Australia on Sunday as authorities ordered people in the country´s flood-ravaged northeast to evacuate and be on the lookout for crocodiles as river levels approach historic highs.

Authorities in Queensland said parts of the state received more than 600 millimetres in 24 hours.

With heavy rains continuing, residents in six flood-prone suburbs of Townsville, a city of around 200,000 people, were told to evacuate their homes on Sunday.

The city´s disaster management group coordinator Zac Dawes said 2,100 homes were under evacuation orders on Sunday evening. But “about 10 percent” of the community did not heed the order, he said.