Lismore set for possible major flooding as more NSW towns forced to evacuate

Emergency Services Minister Steph Cooke said the Bureau of Meteorology predicted possible major flooding for Lismore and resources were being flown into the area to help.

Meanwhile, more residents in Moree in the state's north-west have been told to evacuate after 4,000 locals were told to leave their homes last night.

Emergency Services have warned the town's Mehi River could reach the 1955 flood record, which inundated 800 homes and most CBD businesses.

Moree Mayor Mark Johnson said the situation was "Very serious" and about 70 people had registered at the town's evacuation centre but he was expecting "a lot more."

A few hours south in the village of Carroll — east of Gunnedah — residents were told to evacuate this afternoon.

Other north-west communities of Gravesend, Pallamallawa and those near the Yarraman Bridge were also told to stay vigilant for major flooding.

'Sandbagging the state':

Minister Cooke said the SES was still focused on Moama in the state's south, with the flood peak predicted to exceed the 1993 level on Tuesday.

"We are quite literally sandbagging the state at present," she said.

"We have dispatched over 500,000 sandbags to communities like Moama and across NSW over the last two and a half weeks, they're going out the door at a rate of 30,000 a day."

On Friday, Murray River Mayor Chris Bilkey said he was confident the town's levee, which was built after the 1993 floods and has not been tested since, would hold ahead of the expected peak.

"There are outlying areas to the east of Moama that are already inundated – and they always would be in a flood of this sort – but the expectation is that it will hold for a majority of the town," Cr Bilkey said.

Late on Friday afternoon, the SES told residents in North Gunnedah to prepare to evacuate, after heavy rainfall along the Namoi River caused river rises upstream.

That warning was still in place on Saturday.

Further along the Namoi River, the SES is advising people in Wee Waa to prepare to isolate for up to 10 days due to predictions of further river rises.

Surprise ! More rain on way:

The SES said ongoing wet weather was likely to exacerbate and renew flooding in parts of NSW in the coming days, moving some from minor to major flooding status.

Helen Reid from the Bureau of Meteorology said Saturday would bring more rainfall to flood-affected areas of the New England and north-west regions.

"Some of that will be in the form of thunderstorms which may also bring some heavy rainfall with them, which could lead to not just extra riverine flooding but some flash flooding as well," she said.

She said conditions could ease towards the middle of next week.

Above | Business owners in Moree helped each other move valuable stock to higher ground ahead of the flood.

Original Story By | Haley Craig & Lani Oataway