Sydney, March 15 (IANS) Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Sunday that military troops will be deployed to help communities hit by days of flooding in the Northern Territory (NT).
The government has approved the assistance from Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel to communities around Katherine, 270 km southeast of the territory’s capital Darwin, with the recovery efforts after devastating floods, Albanese said on the social media platform X.
“To everyone doing it tough right now, know we are with you through the response and through the recovery,” he added.
The Northern Territory government has requested help from the ADF, reports Xinhua news agency.
Since early March, the territory has been suffering from severe flooding. According to Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) news reports, Katherine has seen its worst flooding in nearly three decades, with several surrounding remote communities evacuated. Floods also inundated Darwin River homes and devastated rural properties, while the rising waters of Daly River set a new record.
No fatalities have been officially reported in the flooding in the Northern Territory so far, while two international tourists were killed in separate flood incidents in Queensland.
The 26-year-old man and 23-year-old woman were travelling about 250 km from Brisbane to the state’s North Burnett region when they failed to reach their destination amid heavy rainfall and widespread flooding.
An emergency search involving police, helicopters and the State Emergency Service commenced on Wednesday morning, and a vehicle the pair were travelling in was located in floodwaters near the small town of Kilkivan, 175 km northwest of Brisbane, on Wednesday afternoon local time.
The Queensland Police Service confirmed on Thursday that two bodies were found inside the car.
