Long-range forecasters, analysing AI models and satellite data that was gleaned from the upper atmosphere probes, had warned of the latest developing catastrophic weather event weeks ahead of it hitting us.

“East Coast Low” (ECL) pressure systems are a regular feature of eastern Australia. However, this time, the warnings were that this was possibly catastrophic. Quite a few private weather forecasters made predictions due to the demise of the Bureau of Meteorology, due to staff cuts. These were the agencies ringing the alarm bells.

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It had been raining daily, torrentially, intermittently, for six weeks before the great deluge hit. Local agriculture officials warned just before excessive rains arrived that soil profiles showed that the ground throughout the Mid North Coast of New South Wales had already reached 100% saturation and could take no more rain. They said as little as 50 millimetres of precipitation would be devastating.

Where I live in Wauchope, NSW, a town on the Hastings River, people were totally unprepared for what finally unfolded.

There has always been flooding on the Northern Rivers and so many residents were indifferent to “just another flood”.

In the hinterland of all of these larger coastal towns, such as Taree and Port Macquarie, there are dozens of remote villages and towns: Long Flat; Beechwood; Wingham; and Pappinbarra. They become inaccessible at times like this due to their........

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