Australia storm death toll rises
Gale-force winds wreaked havoc in New South Wales
At least six people have been killed by heavy storms that are continuing to lash eastern Australia, officials say.
Gale-force winds and rising flood waters have forced the evacuation of hundreds of people in New South Wales.
More than 200,000 homes remain without electricity in the Hunter Valley and Central Coast regions, and in Sydney.
Some 12 ships have run aground in huge seas, and there are fears that one of the vessels - a coal freighter - may break up and spill its fuel.
Police put the confirmed death toll at six, after the bodies of a woman and her three children were found.
They are believed to be members of a family of five whose car was swept away after part of the Old Pacific Highway collapsed on Friday - when the storms began.
Search teams are containing their search for the body of the father.
Police said earlier they had found the bodies of a couple in their 50s whose car was washed off a bridge.
There are fears that that the death toll will rise further, as at least two other people are still missing.
Hundreds of people were evacuated, including 65 elderly residents at a Central Coast nursing home, as flood waters continued to rise.
Power utility EnergyAustralia said more than 200,000 homes and businesses had no electricity, warning that they could remain blacked out until next week.
"This is the worst storm and the worst damage our electricity network has seen for more than 30 years," EnergyAustralia executive general manager Geoff Lilliss was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper.
Tanker fears
The New South Wales government issued flood warnings and recommended that residents remain indoors.
In the Newcastle suburb of Wallsend, where 200mm of rain fell in a few hours, state premier Morris Iemma warned that the risk was not yet over.
"There＇s still a danger that tonight, the flood waters are going to come back," he said.
On Friday, massive seas pushed the Pasha Bulker coal freighter onto a sand bank off Newcastle.
Your pictures: Beached freighter
Environmentalists have said they fear that if the 40,000-tonne vessel broke up, it could spill its fuel, causing a maritime disaster.
Plans for tugs to pull the ship out to sea were abandoned because of the rough conditions.
The tanker＇s 21 crewmen, all thought to be from the Philippines, were winched to safety and were reported to be in good health.
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