IN FULL: Wilsons River at Lismore to peak at about 12 metres this evening | ABC News

Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience and Minister for Flood Recovery Steph Cooke says the Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast faces a "difficult 24-36 hours". She says Lismore is heading towards a predicted 12 metres or "perhaps a little higher" and 16 evacuation orders are currently in place. The Wilsons River at Lismore is now expected to reach a peak of around 12 metres this evening. Steph Cooke says the river is at 11.37 metres and still rising. She says it will be a difficult 24 to 36 hours for the region. This will be one of the highest peaks on record but still below the peak reached last month. The State Emergency Service says it has conducted 55 flood rescues in the flooded north in the past 24 hours. Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience and Minister for Flood Recovery Steph Cooke, NSW SES Acting Commissioner Daniel Austin, NSW Police Force Assistant Commissioner Joe Cassar and Bureau of Meteorology Meteorologist Dean Narramore are provided a weather and flood update. Subscribe: http://ab.co/1svxLVE Read more here: https://ab.co/3NttlzQ ABC News provides around the clock coverage of news events as they break in Australia and abroad, including the latest coronavirus pandemic updates. It's news when you want it, from Australia's most trusted news organisation. For more from ABC News, click here: https://ab.co/2kxYCZY Watch more ABC News content ad-free on iview: https://ab.co/2OB7Mk1 Go deeper on our ABC News In-depth channel: https://ab.co/2lNeBn2 Like ABC News on Facebook:   / abcnews.au   Follow ABC News on Instagram:   / abcnews_au   Follow ABC News on Twitter:   / abcnews   Note: In most cases, our captions are auto-generated. #ABCNews #ABCNewsAustralia