About 1000 people in the NSW town of Forbes have been told to evacuate before expected major flooding as the entire central west remains on high alert.
The State Emergency Service issued the evacuation warning on Tuesday morning, saying the Lachlan River is rising faster than anticipated and people need to leave immediately or risk being cut off.
With river levels rising faster than expected reaching 10.88 metres, about 500 to 600 homes and businesses are anticipated to be inundated again under the gushing water.
On the 63rd day of the flood crisis Emergency Services Minister Steph Cooke spoke of the ongoing devastation, saying Condobolin was entirely isolated.
"This just isn't people's houses. These are people's homes. It's their belongings, it's their memories, it's their livelihoods and it's their futures," she told reporters in Sydney.
There was major flooding along the Lachlan River at Cowra, Nanami, Forbes, Cottons Weir, Jemalong, Condobolin, Euabalong and Hillston on Tuesday, with further river level rises expected into Wednesday.
Premier Dominic Perrottet says rescue efforts are now focused on the towns of Eugowra and Forbes where 14 aircraft have been used to help stranded residents.
"We know for many of our communities in the central west, there is a lot of pain and a lot of hurt but we've got through these challenges in the past and we'll get through these challenges again," he said.
"We do expect a difficult period of time over the next couple of days."
About 100 Australian Defence personnel have been deployed to help rescue operations, with 12 New Zealand volunteers arriving, along with 14 aircraft supporting and rescuing residents and another four helping with logistics and transport.
SES Commissioner Carlene York described the response "as one of the biggest operations ... across NSW in its history".
The Bureau of Meteorology's Steven Bernasconi said 17 flood warnings are in place with eight major alerts affecting 25 locations.
He outlined major flooding at Forbes, with the peak similar to 1952 flood levels, Cowra at 14.3m peak, Namoi could reach 13.6m and Condoblin at 7.4m.
Major flooding is occurring at Bathurst where the river peaked at 6.4m but has fallen significantly and Eugowra, which peaked at 9m and is slowly falling.
Major flooding with an extended peak is also expected at Gunnedah and Wee Waa, west of Tamworth, from Tuesday into Wednesday. Both communities have been hit with repeated flooding in recent months.
The evacuation order for Forbes comes just over a week after it experienced record flooding that damaged homes, businesses and roads.
Forbes Mayor Phyllis Miller says people are shocked by another inundation.
"They can't believe this could happen twice in such a short period of time," she told ABC TV on Tuesday.
"This is really heartbreaking. Our farming community and businesses are suffering terribly."
The Wyangala dam is spilling at record levels, with 230,000 megalitres being released a day, exacerbating flooding along the Lachlan River.
Mr Perrottet says his government is committed to raising the dam because it will protect lives.
About 150 people were rescued on Monday from roofs in Eugowra and nearby Molong, with extensive damage in the historic town. The SES received reports of entire houses being swept downstream in floodwaters and bridges being moved off pylons.
SES chief superintendent Dallas Burnes said people in Eugowra were shocked at how quickly the water level had risen.
"The velocity was extremely fast - too fast in many cases to put boats in the water - hence the evacuations we performed yesterday with the 12 assets we had on hand via helicopter," he told Nine's Today Show.
© AAP 2022