A dozen Territory emergency responders and 500 Darwin-based defence personnel have been deployed to support the disaster response in the deadly flooding that killed 21 people in New South Wales and Queensland, as the Federal Government declares a “national emergency”.

Northern Territory Emergency Service Director Fleur O’Connor said NSW State Emergency Service (SES) requested support from the Northern Territory to relieve teams in affected areas.

Ms O’Connor said two teams consisting of four volunteers each have travelled to NSW Wednesday and will be deployed in the Northern Rivers Area.

Another set of volunteers with four members will travel on Thursday and be deployed in the Sydney Metropolitan Area.

She said the volunteer members being deployed to NSW come from across the NT, including Alice Springs, Darwin and Palmerston.

“NSW SES units have been working tirelessly throughout this period. The Northern Territory Emergency Service is happy to answer the call to help our NSW counterparts, and over the next two days we will be sending 12 members down to assist with relief efforts,” she said.

“I commend our volunteers for their selfless choice to assist NSW in a time of crisis and we wish everyone affected by these floods a fast recovery.”

On Wednesday afternoon, 250 Darwin-based defence personnel were also sent to support flood affected areas in New South Wales and Queensland. This is on top of approximately 250 defence personnel who departed Tuesday night.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison declared a national emergency on Wednesday in response to the deadly floods along the country’s east coast, and designated catastrophe zones in towns swept away by swollen rivers.

“Australia is becoming a harder country to live in because of these natural disasters,” Mr Morrison said on Wednesday after touring the worst-hit Northern Rivers area of New South Wales.

The emergency declaration, which was set up after Australia’s destructive 2019 bushfires, will allow federal authorities to intervene more directly and help cut red tape and speed up disaster aid amid criticism about a slow response to the floods.

Reuters reported Wednesday that frustrated residents in the Northern Rivers, with no access to power and internet for several days, have blamed government authorities for the slow speed and scale of relief efforts and Mr Morrison declared a media ban on his scheduled visit to hard-hit areas.

About 50,000 people were advised to evacuate from their homes across NSW including 40,000 residents in more than a dozen Sydney suburbs including the northern beaches.