Dozens of towns isolated by flooding in Australian state

A man paddles through flood waters at Londonderry on the western outskirts of Sydney, Australia (Mark Baker/AP)

Hundreds of people have been rescued from floodwaters that have isolated dozens of towns in Australia’s most populous state as record rain continues to inundate the country’s east coast.

Around 18,000 people had been evacuated from flooding in New South Wales (NSW) by Monday and emergency services feared up to 54,000 people could be displaced with rain forecast to continue until Wednesday.