Rain eases in Australia but risk of further flooding remains

A man walks across a flooded street in Windsor, north-west of Sydney, New South Wales (Rick Rycroft/AP)

Heavy rainfall has been forecast to ease across Australia’s east coast but floodwaters are expected to linger for days across New South Wales where 15,000 people were nervously waiting for potential orders to evacuate.

Some 18,000 residents of Australia’s most populous state have fled their homes since last week, with warnings the clean-up could stretch into April.