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Several thousand residents of cities in the interior of Australia began to leave their homes due to the possibility of major floods, reported Reuters, quoted by BTA.

Local authorities issued more than 100 flood warnings today after rivers burst their banks.

This caused thousands of people to evacuate in the middle of the night.

Severe flooding is expected in Forbes, a rural town in the state's wheat belt, with the Lachlan River expected to reach a 70-year high later on Friday, the Bureau of Meteorology (BM) said.

"Along the Murrumbidgee River in Wagga Wagga, home to around 70,000 people, flooding could soon hit, with levels expected to be higher than the 2010 floods," the BM said.

Eastern Australia is in the grip of its fourth major flood this year due to the perennial La NiƱa weather phenomenon, which is usually associated with increased rainfall.

The entire town of Forbes, population over 8,000, and about 700 residents of the northern parts of Wagga Wagga were ordered to evacuate.

The government has warned that the flooding of farmland will push up the price of fruit and vegetables, causing more problems for families already struggling with rising inflation.

Rescue crews used helicopters to pull more than 1,000 sheep to safety after the animals became trapped in a pasture near Forbes that is being slowly filled by the rising waters of a local river.

Thousands evacuated due to floods in Australia