Two rural NSW towns are bracing for floodwaters that are expected to hit their highest point on Sunday.
About 1000 people in Forbes were ordered to evacuate on Saturday while residents at Condobolin remain on stand-by as waters continued to rise.
The Lachlan River is expected to rise to 10.65 metres on Sunday, matching its peak during the 1990 floods.
The flood is expected to be the worst to hit Forbes since 132 houses were damaged in 1990, as recent heavy rains have saturated large parts of inland NSW.
The town could be cut in two, Forbes Shire Council spokesman John Zannes said.
More than 230 homes were ordered to evacuate, with many staying at the Forbes High School evacuation centre.
"The water's coming up at Lake Forbes, which cuts the town in two or three," he told AAP on Saturday.
"Low lying areas are at risk of being inundated with water or being isolated.
"There's already a lot of cropping land which has been covered."
NSW Deputy Premier Troy Grant said the flooding will have a long-term impact on farming communities.
"What's coming is worrying the population more than what will happen tomorrow morning," he told Sky News on Saturday.
He said there had been significant stock and crop losses already, and the full impact of the flooding wouldn't be known until the waters subsided but many farming families would be without their normal income.
"Around here, most of the harvesting is done in November and a lot of those crops have been washed away," Mr Grant said.
Farmers in flood-affected regions are nervously waiting to see how much damage has been done to crops once the waters recede, a NSW Farmers spokesman said.
To date more than 2000 sheep and more than 1000 head of cattle have been moved to higher ground.
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