Family of seven found as heavy rain and flooding ravages Goldfields and north-west

Police have found a missing family of seven who were feared to have vanished in dangerous floodwaters.

On Wednesday afternoon search efforts had been successful in locating three elderly people and four children after they were last seen leaving Kalgoorlie-Boulder in two cars on Sunday.

Following dangerous weather conditions on Tuesday, the search resumed on Wednesday afternoon — prompting officers to scan the “vast area” between Kalgoorlie Boulder and Tjuntjuntjara, the community where the seven people reside.

“Air assets including Police Air Wing and local Kalgoorlie helicopter and air services have now been deployed to search the vast area between Kalgoorlie Boulder and Tjuntjuntjarra community,” a police spokeswoman said.

On Wednesday afternoon the family was found “well within” the search area by the Police Air Wing and rescue efforts are currently underway to reach them.

A photograph taken by police shows all seven of the missing people stranded around their bogged car.

Four of those people are children, aged between seven and 17.

It is unknown what condition they are in or whether they have sustained any injuries after being stranded in the outback for four days.

Tjuntjuntjara Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Jon Lark said his community was “so pleased” after the family was found alive.

“We are overwhelmed, we are so emotional, we are so pleased,” he said.

“I’ve just been in a teams meeting with the police.... everyone is so happy.”

Mr Lark said the road where the family was found is the only access road to their community.

Goldfields-Esperance Police Insp. Mick Kelly on Tuesday said he hoped the family had stayed with their vehicles.

“Information to hand is that there’s minimal food, one of the vehicles is set up with water, some camping stuff, and bedding,” he said.

“We are praying that they’ve stayed with the car and once we have the availability to locate (them) via air that’s what we’ll be doing.”

Both vehicles were believed to be travelling in convoy to the community, where they are residents, about 650km north-east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

It comes after police confirmed they could not utilise air and land assets yet on Wednesday morning.

“At this time road conditions are dangerous, particularly in relation to the route we believe the people have taken,” police said.

“Motorists travelling in the Goldfields area are urged to check the Main Roads and Bureau of Meteorology sites for current information on road conditions.”

Floodwaters inundated the Nullarbor after six months of rain hit the region in 24 hours, cutting WA’s main rail link to the east and closing Eyre Highway.

DFES said weather warning will bring little respite for search teams, with more wet weather and flooding forecast for Cocklebiddy, Eyre and Rawlinna on Wednesday.

The Department of Fire and Emergency Services severe weather warnings remain current as a “near-stationary trough” will produce a “band of heavy rainfall” set to remain over the area.

Isolated six-hourly rainfall, with totals of 30mm to 80mm of rain, are likely, DFES said.

“A separate severe thunderstorm warning will be issued if very dangerous thunderstorms with intense rainfall are detected,” DFES said.

“Locally intense rainfall which may lead to dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding is also possible with embedded thunderstorm activity in the Eucla district.

“Heavy to locally Intense rainfall is forecast to ease below warning thresholds this afternoon or evening.

“People in Eucla and Rawlinna in Eucla district need to take action now as minor flooding is expected over the coming days.”

Rawlinna has had 155mm of rain, more than half the region’s annual rainfall, since 9am on Friday.

Hundreds of millimetres of rain has soaked a huge section of WA.

In the north, parts of the Great Northern Highway have been shut as flash flooding impacts the road between Halls Creek and Fitzroy Crossing.

Parry Creek Farm, south-east of Wyndham, was submerged after 170mm of rain fell at the weekend.

The drenching comes as a cyclone is expected to form off WA’s north-west in the coming days.

The Bureau of Meteorology said there was a high chance a tropical low — that battered Christmas Island and is moving towards WA’s north-west — would intensify into a category two system and may hit the area on Friday.

While the path of the cyclone is “uncertain”, BOM said there was a risk it could directly impact the Pilbara coast over the weekend.