NSW SES has responded to 430 incidents in previous 24 hours as official warns of ‘important’ rain to come back
Debbie Platz, the deputy commissioner of NSW SES, simply gave an replace in regards to the climate scenario throughout the state. She instructed ABC Information:
This technique may be very widespread and … already we’ve had important rain proper up and down the east coast of New South Wales, but additionally important rain inland as nicely …
That’s going to convey with it flash flooding and renewed riverine rises. Beforehand to this occasion, we had a system undergo in all probability 10 days in the past, and that system continues to be inflicting flooding alongside the Namoi and Barwon rivers.
Platz mentioned the state is in for “important” rainfall, saying it’s potential that within the Sydney space and within the north greater than 100mm of rain is forecast, with some areas probably seeing as much as 120mm.
Over the past 24 hours NSW SES has responded to 430 incidents.
An individual carrying an umbrella walks throughout the harbour from Sydney Opera Home on 21 August, 2025. {Photograph}: Hollie Adams/ReutersShare
Up to date at 19.42 EDT
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Natasha Could
Affected person ‘too scared’ to return to Blacktown hospital out of worry they’ll die there, NSW finances estimates hears
The NSW Well being minister Ryan Park is showing earlier than finances estimates this morning and questions kicked off across the state of Blacktown hospital.
Opposition MLC Susan Carter requested Park about what has been completed since sufferers have been photographed sleeping on the ground of the hospital in September final yr.
Ryan Park. {Photograph}: Bianca de Marchi/AAP
Park mentioned on time therapy has gone up from one in six sufferers being handled on time again in March 2023, roughly about 16.5%, “below us, most up-to-date information says one in two being handled on time, roughly round 44%”.
Carter requested a few resident referred to as Patrick she mentioned emailed his workplace on Monday:
This week he was pressured to attend for 38 hours and 17 minutes in Blacktown emergency division. He wasn’t fed. He noticed sufferers sleeping on the ground of the emergency division. He’s now too scared to show up at Blacktown hospital as a result of he fears that he’ll die there.
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Right here’s a visible of the present state of flood advisories throughout NSW from the Bureau of Meteorology:
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Netanyahu says Albanese’s status ‘eternally tarnished’
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed Anthony Albanese in a brand new interview with Sky Information. The Israeli chief expanded on his criticism of Australia’s resolution to recognise a Palestinian state in quotes teased from the interview, set to air in full later in the present day. Netanyahu mentioned:
I’m certain he has a good report as a public servant, however I believe his report is eternally tarnished by the weak spot that he confirmed within the face of those Hamas terrorist monsters.
When the worst terrorist organisation on Earth … when these individuals congratulate the prime minister of Australia, you already know one thing is mistaken.
The total interview airs at 8pm tonight.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:
Historical past will bear in mind Albanese for what he’s: A weak politician
who betrayed Israel and deserted Australia’s Jews.
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) August 19, 2025Share
Up to date at 20.42 EDT
Some elements of NSW noticed 115mm of rain in a single day, with extra to come back
The Bureau of Meteorology mentioned NSW’s Port Macquarie noticed 115mm of rain within the 21-hour interval to 6am this morning, with heavy falls within the close by space. Helen Reid, a meteorologist with the bureau, mentioned these situations are anticipated to proceed all through the day alongside your complete east coast of NSW as much as south-east Queensland.
Widespread falls of 40mm-80mm are anticipated from the Gold Coast all the way down to the Illawarra in NSW, with 20-50mm forecast for the ranges and western slopes. However the Bom mentioned larger falls are potential, with many flood warnings issued throughout the state.
Reid mentioned the heavy rain will ease on Friday, however moist situations will in all probability stay by the weekend in coastal areas.
Friday will begin off as a moist day alongside the coast, however we’re prone to begin to see the rain easing to patchier showers all through the afternoon. Rainfall totals will nonetheless be average on Friday.
A radar picture of rain patterns throughout japanese AustraliaShare
Up to date at 20.36 EDT
Lehrmann attraction resumes
Adeshola Ore
Bruce Lehrmann’s attraction towards the federal court docket ruling that he was not defamed by Community 10 and Lisa Wilkinson has begun for the day.
Sue Chrysanthou SC, for Wilkinson, is anticipated to complete her arguments this morning. Zali Burrows, for Lehrmann, will then begin her response.
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Up to date at 20.21 EDT
Lehrmann’s written submissions revealed by federal court docket
Amanda Meade
Bruce Lehrmann’s written submissions have been revealed by the federal court docket forward of the beginning of the second day of his attraction towards his misplaced defamation case.
Within the paperwork his lawyer, Zali Burrows, argues that the unique choose, Justice Michael Lee, “misconstrued the which means of the phrase ‘rape’”.
Bruce Lehrmann departs federal court docket on Wendesday. {Photograph}: Dan Himbrechts/AAP
“The issue is that [The Project] broadcast clearly suggests a violent rape, the place the complainant was in tears and repeatedly refused consent, of which repeated refusal the perpetrator should have been conscious,” the paperwork launched by the court docket says. They add:
That’s fairly completely different from a non-violent rape involving inadvertent recklessness as as to whether there was consent.
Lehrmann is asking the attraction court docket to just accept that Lee’s judgment denied Lehrmann procedural equity and pure justice as a result of “details weren’t put to Mr Lehrmann” about “a model of the rape that His Honour discovered”.
We’ll convey you extra from the attraction because the day goes on.
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Up to date at 20.14 EDT
Patrick Commins
What may very well be one of many largest tax reform ‘prizes’?
We talked about earlier that Aruna Sathanapally, the chief govt of the Grattan Institute, was doing a presentation later this morning to the roundtable on “a greater tax system”.
We aren’t allowed within the cupboard room, however now we have a good concept what will probably be in that presentation. In Sathanapally’s submission to the talkfest, she outlined quite a few reforms.
First: “The most important tax reform prize in Australia could be to switch state stamp duties with common property taxes.”
{Photograph}: Mick Tsikas/AAP
Then there are a number of recommendations: curbing tremendous tax concessions; halving the capital positive factors tax low cost and winding again damaging gearing; broadening and/or elevating the GST; and redesigning the petroleum useful resource lease tax.
The submission additionally floats the thought of an inheritance tax and a company cashflow tax, harking back to what the Productiveness Fee lately proposed.
Sathanapally mentioned a tax reform bundle “may be wanted to share the prices extra broadly and to lift sufficient income to have the ability to compensate those that can least afford it”.
One such bundle may very well be a GST “grand cut price” between the commonwealth and the states, which might contain broadening and mountain climbing the consumption tax to pay for boosted welfare and decrease revenue tax.
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Up to date at 19.52 EDT
NSW SES has responded to 430 incidents in previous 24 hours as official warns of ‘important’ rain to come back
Debbie Platz, the deputy commissioner of NSW SES, simply gave an replace in regards to the climate scenario throughout the state. She instructed ABC Information:
This technique may be very widespread and … already we’ve had important rain proper up and down the east coast of New South Wales, but additionally important rain inland as nicely …
That’s going to convey with it flash flooding and renewed riverine rises. Beforehand to this occasion, we had a system undergo in all probability 10 days in the past, and that system continues to be inflicting flooding alongside the Namoi and Barwon rivers.
Platz mentioned the state is in for “important” rainfall, saying it’s potential that within the Sydney space and within the north greater than 100mm of rain is forecast, with some areas probably seeing as much as 120mm.
Over the past 24 hours NSW SES has responded to 430 incidents.
An individual carrying an umbrella walks throughout the harbour from Sydney Opera Home on 21 August, 2025. {Photograph}: Hollie Adams/ReutersShare
Up to date at 19.42 EDT
Patrick Commins
It’s day three of the roundtable. On deck: tax and finances sustainability
It’s day three of the federal government’s financial reform roundtable, and the 2 dozen or so attendees within the cupboard room will probably be discussing tax and finances sustainability.
Earlier than booting out the media, Jim Chalmers in his opening remarks highlighted the “seven large intensifying pressures on our finances”.
Whereas the treasurer didn’t listing all of them, the finances papers present the quickest rising main funds are (beginning with the quickest rising): curiosity on the debt, the NDIS, defence, hospitals, medical advantages, aged care, and the kid care subsidy.
“5 out of these seven are within the care financial system,” Chalmers famous, including:
The problem on us is to transform the progress we’ve made within the close to time period within the finances, into long run structural progress within the finances.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers. {Photograph}: Mick Tsikas/AAP
The treasury secretary, Jenny Wilkinson, is presenting first up, adopted by a session on effectivity in authorities providers (together with care).
The CEO of the Grattan Institute, Aruna Sathanapally, will give a presentation on “a greater tax system” later this morning, which would be the subject of dialog for the remainder of the afternoon.
At 4.20pm the treasurer is scheduled to ship a “shut and means ahead”, which could embody some “announceables”.
Don’t maintain your breath for a significant tax announcement, although: Anthony Albanese has already dominated out any new tax modifications on this time period of presidency.
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Up to date at 19.27 EDT
Girl helping police after child discovered lifeless in drain in WA
A girl in her 30s is helping police relating to the demise of an toddler who was discovered lifeless in a storm drain in Alexander Heights on Monday.
The girl is receiving applicable care and help, WA police mentioned final evening, however “given the sensitivities” the police wouldn’t make any additional remark.
Learn our story on the invention of the newborn right here:
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Nationwide highway toll highest in 15 years, with variety of pedestrians killed up greater than 27%
Australian highway accidents have claimed their highest variety of victims in 15 years, with the nationwide highway toll fuelled by a rising variety of pedestrian deaths, AAP report.
Latest figures present the nationwide highway toll had grown to 1,340 deaths in the course of the yr to 31 July – a rise of two.9%. However the variety of pedestrians killed in highway accidents in the course of the yr jumped by 27.3%, a further 44 individuals.
{Photograph}: James D Morgan/Getty Photographs
Highway toll figures confirmed a further 38 individuals have been killed on Australian roads over the last 12 months, with important will increase in Tasmania (up 41%), the ACT (14%), and Western Australia (12%).
The figures represented the worst highway toll recorded since 2010 when 1,395 individuals died in highway accidents, and confirmed Australia was failing to satisfy its purpose to halve the highway toll by 2030, Australian Vehicle Affiliation managing director Michael Bradley mentioned.
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Up to date at 19.20 EDT
Prue Automotive says she is ‘doing OK’ amid therapy for breast most cancers
NSW deputy premier Prue Automotive mentioned she is “in addition to you may be in the course of chemo” after saying she would take time away to get therapy for breast most cancers in June.
Automotive instructed 2GB this morning:
It’s an extended and, at instances, fairly brutal course of, however I’m doing OK.
Prue Automotive, NSW deputy premier. {Photograph}: Dan Himbrechts/AAP
Automotive praised developments in most cancers analysis, pointing to the Most cancers Council’s Daffodil Day in the present day. However she famous each time she went in for therapy there was have been lots of of others there too, “having the identical course of for several types of cancers”.
We have to do higher. We have to preserve making the therapy much less brutal. We have to finally discover a remedy, and we have to guarantee that all these lots of of individuals daily, of individuals having chemo proper now for several types of most cancers or going by surgical procedure or radiation, that they’ll have a greater probability of survival and thriving of their life as soon as they’ve completed their therapy.
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Up to date at 18.37 EDT
Dozens of flood advisories throughout NSW as heavy rain continues
There are dozens of flood advisories throughout NSW this morning after an evening of heavy rain.
NSW SES is advising residents to remain knowledgeable from an space stretching from south of Sydney as much as the Central Coast, the north coast, the New England area and the state’s north-west.
The company wrote on social media:
With the morning commute in full swing, it’s necessary to take further care and drive to the situations.
Heavy rainfall is anticipated to proceed in the present day & renewed flooding is forecast for the coastal and north west areas of the state.
Keep protected on the roads throughout moist climate 🚗
With the morning commute in full swing, it’s necessary to take further care and drive to the situations.
Heavy rainfall is anticipated to proceed in the present day & renewed flooding is forecast for the coastal and north west areas of the state. pic.twitter.com/yrkFyFfXmU
— NSW SES (@NSWSES) August 20, 2025Share
Up to date at 18.48 EDT
