On the 9th local time, Australian Prime Minister Morrison declared a national emergency in Australia to enable the federal government to respond more effectively to the currently raging floods.
Morrison also announced more financial assistance and an extension of subsidies for victims, allocating AU$25 million (US$18.2 million) to provide emergency relief, food relief and counseling services to victims, and providing AU$31.2 million (US$22.7 million). million) for long-term mental health services.
Floodwaters flowed south from Queensland into New South Wales in the region’s worst disaster since an event dubbed a once-in-a-century event in 2011.
Australia hit by heavy rain
Since late February, the east coast of Australia has been experiencing continuous heavy rainfall for several days. February precipitation in many places in Queensland has reached a record high for the same period in history. In some areas, the rainfall in a single day exceeds the average rainfall for the entire month.
Multiple days of rainfall have put pressure on the area. On February 28, the total daily rainfall in Rosebank, northeastern New South Wales, reached 701.8 millimeters, which was the highest rainfall recorded there since 1954.
On the 8th local time, most parts of Australia were hit by heavy rain again, with Sydney and surrounding areas severely affected. Heavy rains caused road closures, suspended some transportation lines, and cut off the Internet and power in some areas.
Heavy rains flooded Sydney, turning the entire city into a vast sea, accompanied by landslides.
It is reported that the flood has killed 20 people so far, destroyed thousands of houses and caused millions of dollars in material damage. Official data shows that rainfall in Sydney, the largest city in New South Wales, this year has reached about 80% of previous years.
In addition, the local meteorological bureau stated that an area of 1,555 kilometers has been hit by several floods.
It is reported that since the heavy rain hit the morning of the 7th local time, the rainfall in Sydney suburbs has been as high as 200 millimeters, exceeding the average rainfall in March. Residents in Sydney’s northeast and southwest were forced to evacuate and about 5,000 homes were destroyed.
Currently, the New South Wales state government, where Sydney is located, has issued flood warnings and emergency evacuation orders to about 60,000 residents along 2,000 kilometers.
New South Wales Emergency Service Commissioner Karyn York said flooding of this severity had never occurred in the area.
S&P Global Ratings said that flooding in New South Wales and Queensland could result in insured losses of at least US$1 billion or even US$2 billion, and the Australian government promised to “spare no effort” to provide financial support to the victims.
Dozens of emergency evacuation centers in the disaster-stricken areas are open normally. People in the disaster-stricken areas have evacuated dangerous areas in accordance with the government’s evacuation warnings. Firefighting and rescue teams are also helping to relocate the affected people.
Maersk issues port-hopping notice
Due to the impact of weather and flooding, according to a notice issued by Maersk on March 8, some route service operations are delayed and calls at Brisbane and Sydney ports will be skipped.
Coordination with individual ports is currently underway to update revised schedules and deadlines.
We would like to remind freight forwarders and cargo owners who plan to ship to Australia in the near future or whose goods are in transit to pay close attention to the delays and impacts caused by the floods, and communicate with the shipping companies in a timely manner to see if their goods are affected.
At the same time, pay attention to the logistics situation in real time and make response plans to avoid unnecessary losses.
Pay attention to “low probability and high impact” events
Looking around the world, since the beginning of 2022, the world has encountered many extreme events, such as blizzards and winter storms in the United States, and the “Eunice” storm in Europe.
The “2021 China Climate Bulletin” also shows that my country’s annual average temperature in 2021 is 10.5°C, 1.0°C higher than normal. It is the warmest year since 1951 and suffered 36 regional heavy rains throughout the year.
According to research, changes in extreme events in the future are related to the extent of global warming. Extreme temperatures, extreme precipitation, droughts and other extreme events will all show a non-linear increasing trend. Even a small warming (such as a 0.5°C warming) may lead to extreme events. Increase and enhance.
At the same time, as global climate warming intensifies, “low probability and high impact” events will become more likely to occur and will bring greater climate risks and impacts.
For foreign traders, the first to suffer when extreme weather occurs is logistics delays, loss and damage of goods in transit, inability to ship goods as agreed, and even possible loss of contact with customers.
Finally, I would like to remind all foreign trade friends again that even on a daily basis, you should pay close attention to the policies, economy and climate conditions of the shipping country, keep in touch with shipping companies and freight forwarding customers, buy good insurance, and follow up on the logistics status.
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