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The extreme weather in parts of Australia with severe storms and devastating floods continues. Several cities in the Kimberley region in the northwest of the country have been particularly affected. It could be weeks before the Fitzroy Crossing site and some 50 outback communities populated by indigenous peoples can be reached by land again, Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said on Australian radio on Thursday. Authorities had previously spoken of a flood of the century in the region. The government will send the army to help the residents, Watt announced.

The Western Australian government has now set up two evacuation centers for those affected. The army will help fly people in need to the town of Broome, Watt said. Due to the extremely high water level, electricity was cut off in the entire area as a precaution, broadcaster ABC reports, citing operator Horizon Power. But there are also reports of extreme weather phenomena from other parts of the country.

According to Australian media, there was a severe storm overnight in Queensland on the east coast with more than 200,000 lightning bolts. Broadcaster 9News spoke of a “spectacular light show” – but with consequences: Thousands of people north of Brisbane were without power on Thursday.

In the southwest of the state of Western Australia, on the other hand, people were fleeing a bushfire. The flames raged about 140 miles south of the city of Perth in towns around Newlands. Authorities warned the fire was “unpredictable and out of control”.

Australia in particular is suffering from the effects of climate change. A report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) from February 2022 assumes that the country will be hit even more often by devastating natural phenomena in the future. (cpf/sda/dpa)