Mayor of Kempsey, Liz Campbell, said she fears the situation could worsen in the Mid North coast NSW town.
“This is different to what we’ve seen before,” she told 9News.
“If the rain that’s predicted comes today or up river early next week, we could be in big trouble.”
There are evacuation centres at Kempsey Showground and South West Rocks Country club.
However, with some rural areas now cut off by water, officials say people should not drive through flood waters under any circumstances.
This content first appear on 9news