A 2000-kilometre band of thunderstorms was seen stretching over the Northern Territory and South Australia yesterday, putting the entire east coast once again on flood alert as forecasters warn wild weather will be felt in nearly every state.

The storm activity is being driven by moisture-laden air, which is interacting with a low pressure system.

Weatherzone said the storm band gives "a preview of what's heading for eastern Australia over the next few days".

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"Looking ahead, the upper-level low and its associated rain and thunderstorm activity will continue to spread further east during the next few days," the weather service said.

"This weather system will produce areas of heavy rain and severe thunderstorms over multiple states during the next several days.

"Some of this rain is likely to cause flooding, including areas of the Murray Darling Basin that have received heavy rain recently."

Parts of flood-ravaged Victoria have seen three months worth of rain in just two days, meteorologist Ben Domensino says.

Falls of up to 230mm have been recorded in the past seven days, with Bendigo registering 117mm in just two.

Domensino said it was the highest two-day rainfall on records stretching back over 100 years.

"Over the next four to five days we should see about two rain-bearing systems moving through the region," Domensino said.

"On Wednesday and Thursday we won't see too much rain falling but it should start to ramp up on Friday and we can see the accumulated totals over the next five days could be pushing upwards of 50mm.

"I think the heaviest rain will probably come on Monday or Tuesday next week."

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The warnings are being echoed by the Bureau of Meteorology, who has issued an expansive flood watch across multiple states.

Senior meteorologist at the Bureau, Dean Narramore said the system will increase the flood risk through Victoria, New South Wales and parts of Queensland.

"In anticipation of that, we do have not only flood warnings with the ongoing flooding across large parts of NSW and Victoria now, but we have also issued flood watches," he said.

"Here in this purple area, through large parts of South Australia, much of southern inland Queensland, and a number of our rivers that aren't flooded across eastern parts of NSW."

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Narramore said the wild, stormy weather will be felt in the eastern states from Wednesday and endure for the rest of the week.

"As we move into Wednesday we will see that system move further eastwards bringing widespread rain and storms through Queensland, NSW, and continuing in eastern parts of South Australia."

He said "quite severe thunderstorms" will hit eastern NSW and Queensland on Thursday.

"We could see large hail, damaging winds, and very heavy rainfall," Narramore said, adding Victoria will cop the worst of it from Thursday evening, into Friday.

"This is not good news for our already flooded areas."

Residents who live "anywhere across eastern Australia" are being warned to stay up to date with warnings.

The Bureau said widespread rainfall totals of 25 to 50 mm are likely across South Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, Tasmania, and Victoria this week.

Rainfall will be heavier in southern inland Queensland on and west of the ranges in New South Wales and northern Victoria, with falls between 50 to 100 mm forecast.

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Major flooding continues in Victoria and NSW

The warnings come as broad swathes of NSW and Victoria remain in flood.

As of 5.30am AEDT, Victoria has more than 50 flood warnings in place, stretching from north of Melbourne to the NSW border.

Evacuation orders are current for Echuca and Echuca Village, Barmah and Lower Moira, as well as Bunbartha, Zeerust, Mundoona and Kaarimba. 

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There have been 22 flood rescues statewide over the past 24 hours.

One of the areas of most concern is the town of Echuca, which is facing renewed river rises.

The hopes of locals and contractors are resting on a hastily constructed 2.5 kilometre clay levee, designed to keep water out of the majority of the town.

"There are hundreds of homes on the wrong side and they are being sacrificed for the town," Today reporter Izabella Staskowski said.

"People who have been living on the wrong side are helping to build the levee.

"This would be hard, they say it has to be done to try and save the town…essentially this levee it is going to push water back into those houses."

The regional centre of Shepparton is still in major flood, with fears it could be so for more than a week.

The Goulburn river peaked at 12.06m. Currently it's still at 11.53m and is expected to rise again over the weekend.

The Australian Defence Force has now doubled its assistance in Victoria, with 200 troops on the ground.

Meanwhile, in NSW an emergency area has been declared on part of Murray River, downstream of Tocumwal Road Bridge to Barham Bridge.

Under section 22 of the State Emergency Services Act 1989 (NSW) (SES Act) people are being directed to leave the emergency area, and not to enter it.

The SES is also urging Moama residents to prepare for major flooding, not seen for 30 years.

"The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast flood levels may exceed the 1993 flood at Moama from later this week, after flows from the Murray River and Victorian rivers reach the community," it said in a statement.

Across NSW there are more than 70 flood warnings. Of these, eight are at an emergency level. 

An Iranian female competitive climber has left South Korea after competing at an event without her nation's mandatory headscarf covering, authorities say.

Farsi-language media outside of Iran warned she may have been forced to leave early by Iranian officials and could face arrest back home, which Tehran quickly denied.

The decision by Elnaz Rekabi, a multiple medalist in competitions, to forgo the headscarf, or hijab, came as protests sparked by the September 16 death in custody of a 22-year-old woman have entered a fifth week. Mahsa Amini was detained by the country's morality police over her clothing.

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The demonstrations, drawing school-age children, oil workers and others to the street in over 100 cities, represent the most serious challenge to Iran's theocracy since the mass protests surrounding its disputed 2009 presidential election.

A later Instagram post on an account attributed to Rekabi described her not wearing a hijab as "unintentional" though it wasn't immediately clear whether she wrote the post or what condition she was in at the time.

The Iranian government routinely pressures activists at home and abroad, often airing what rights group describe as coerced confessions on state television.

Rekabi left Seoul on a Tuesday morning flight, the Iranian Embassy in South Korea said. The BBC's Persian service, which has extensive contacts within Iran despite being banned from operating there, quoted an unnamed "informed source" who described Iranian officials as seizing both Rekabi's mobile phone and passport.

BBC Persian also said she initially had been scheduled to return on Wednesday, but her flight apparently had been moved up unexpectedly.

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IranWire, another website focusing on the country founded by Iranian-Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari who once was detained by Iran, alleged that Rekabi would be immediately transferred to Tehran's notorious Evin Prison after arriving in the country. Evin Prison was the site of a massive fire this weekend that killed at least eight prisoners.

In a tweet, the Iranian Embassy in Seoul denied "all the fake, false news and disinformation" regarding Rekabi's departure on Tuesday.

But instead of posting a photo of her from the Seoul competition, it posted an image of her wearing a headscarf at a previous competition in Moscow, where she took a bronze medal.

Calls to the Iranian Embassy in Seoul rang unanswered on Tuesday.

Rekabi didn't put on a hijab during Sunday's final at the International Federation of Sport Climbing's Asia Championship, according to the Seoul-based Korea Alpine Federation, the organisers of the event.

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Federation officials said Rekabi wore a hijab during her initial appearances at the one-week climbing event. She wore just a black headband when competing on Sunday, her dark hair pulled back in a ponytail; she had a white jersey with Iran's flag as a logo on it.

The later Instagram post, written in the first person, offered an apology on Rekabi's behalf. The post blamed a sudden call for her to climb the wall in the competition — although footage of the competition showed Rekabi relaxed as she approached and after she competed. It also sought to describe her travel back to Iran on Tuesday as being "on schedule".

Rekabi was on Iran's 11-member delegation, comprising eight athletes and three coaches, to the event, according to the federation.

Federation officials said they were not initially aware of Rekabi competing without the hijab but looked into the case after receiving inquires about her.

They said the event doesn't have any rules on requiring female athletes wearing or not wearing headscarves. However, Iranian women competing abroad under the Iranian flag always wear the hijab.

"Our understanding is that she is returning to Iran, and we will continue to monitor the situation as it develops on her arrival," the International Federation of Sport Climbing, which oversaw the event, said in a statement.

"It is important to stress that athletes' safety is paramount for us and we support any efforts to keep a valued member of our community safe in this situation."

The federation said it had been in touch with both Rekabi and Iranian officials, but declined to elaborate on the substance of those calls when reached by The Associated Press. The federation also declined to discuss the Instagram post attributed to Rekabi and the claims in it.

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Later on Tuesday, South Korea's Foreign Ministry acknowledged that the Iranian athlete and her team had left the country, without elaborating.

Rekabi, 33, has finished on the podium three times in the Asian Championships, taking one silver and two bronze medals for her efforts.

So far, human rights groups estimate that more than 200 people have been killed in the protests and the violent security force crackdown that followed. Iran has not offered a death toll in weeks.

Demonstrations have been seen in more than 100 cities, according to the group Human Rights Activists in Iran. Thousands are believed to have been arrested.

Gathering information about the demonstrations remains difficult, however. Internet access has been disrupted for weeks by the Iranian government.

Meanwhile, authorities have detained at least 40 journalists, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have repeatedly alleged the country's foreign enemies are behind the ongoing demonstrations, rather than Iranians angered by Amini's death and the country's other woes.

Iranians have seen their life savings evaporate; the country's currency, the rial, plummeted and Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers has been reduced to tatters.

In a statement on Tuesday, the office of the United Nations high commissioner for human rights called for the immediate release of all those "arbitrarily detained" in the protests.

It also criticised the "unabated violent response by security forces" that has seen even children reportedly arrested and killed.

"The continued unnecessary and disproportionate use of force against protesters must stop," the statement said.

"Arresting people solely for exercising their rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression constitutes an arbitrary deprivation of liberty."

Australia will host a royal tour in 2024 that coincides with celebrations marking 200 years of democracy, the NSW Parliament appears to have confirmed.

In a media release issued on Tuesday night, the NSW Parliament said a "much-anticipated royal tour in 2024" promised to be a highlight of the Legislative Council bicentenary celebrations.

It appears to be the first official confirmation of a royal visit, after rumours that an Australian tour was on the cards.

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In an event schedule, the Legislative Council lists the "anticipated royal tour" for October.

"Two centuries of democracy in Australia is being celebrated with a wide and exciting range of events marking the establishment of the nation's first parliament, the New South Wales Legislative Council, with a much-anticipated royal visit in 2024 promising to be a highlight," the statement said.

"It was during the first royal tour to Australia in 1954 that her late majesty Queen Elizabeth II paid a visit to the NSW Parliament and christened it Australia's 'Mother Parliament'."

It was not clear whether the newly crowned King Charles III would be heading down under or who else would be attending.

It is understood it is likely to be the King and Queen Consort who will visit but there is also a chance it could be Prince William and Kate, 9News has been told.

"The establishment, in 1823, of the Legislative Council as the first legislative body in Australia was to have defining and profound impacts," Governor Margaret Beazley said. 

"In celebrating the bicentenary of the Legislative Council, we celebrate its role in our parliamentary democracy, as required by s5 of the NSW Constitution: 'to make laws for the peace, welfare, and good government of New South Wales, in all cases whatsoever.'"

Buckingham Palace would not comment on the announcement.

The Legislative Council has been contacted to clarify the details.

The bicentenary celebrations are set to include the 2024 Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference, a travelling exhibition through rural and regional Australia, the commission of a major Indigenous artwork and the establishment of a young Indigenous leaders program, as well as prominent speakers.

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A young woman stabbed her violent criminal father twice in the chest, piercing his heart, after a heated argument when he called her a slut, a jury has been told.

In his opening address to the Newcastle Supreme Court jury today, crown prosecutor Brian Costello said Maddison Hickson fled the scene after the stabbing, telling a friend she wanted her "mummy".

Costello said Hickson's friend, Taylah McDonald, then put the knife in the dishwasher and put it through a wash cycle.

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Hickson has pleaded not guilty to murdering her father, Michael Carroll, 51, at a house in Tenambit, near Maitland, on January 16 last year.

McDonald pleaded not guilty to one count of misleading police about the knife used in the stabbing with intent to hinder the discovery of evidence, and one count of being an accessory after the fact to murder.

Costello said Carroll had been sitting in the lounge room just after 7pm when he argued with his daughter and called her a slut.

The prosecutor said Hickson was swearing at her father when he stood up and they appeared to be holding or hugging each other, but not in a friendly way.

Hickson then suddenly ran into the front yard before her father followed four seconds later, collapsed and died from the two stab wounds to his heart.

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Hickson told a friend standing outside: "Take me to my mummy, I want my mummy."

She then called her mother and told her: "He attacked me. I think I stabbed my dad."

Costello said Hickson had stabbed her father in a spontaneous response out of anger and frustration following the heated argument and had not been in fear of him or acting in self-defence.

But he said if the jury believed she had been fearful, they could still find her guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter if they considered what she did was not a reasonable response in the circumstances.

Defence barrister Peter Krisenthal said Hickson's case was a fairly simple one because she was just defending herself.

Krisenthal said Hickson ran out of the house after the stabbing and told her friend: "Get me away from him (her father)."

He said Hickson was choking with emotion when she later told police: "He tried to stab me."

Krisenthal said Hickson had been 21 at the time and her father had not been present for much of her life because of his criminal lifestyle.

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"Mr Carroll had a tendency to become violent, including with the use of weapons, to assault and intimidate people with whom he had a grievance," the defence barrister said.

"Mr Carroll would regularly resort to physical violence if he didn't like what someone said."

Krisenthal outlined how Carroll had been a convicted criminal, used a baseball bat and pliers to assault one of his victims, and had punched and tried to kick his then-pregnant partner in the stomach after she refused his demand to have an abortion.

The defence barrister said Carroll's use of methamphetamine caused him to become paranoid and aggressive.

Hickson's older sister, Lacey, told the court their father had not always been in their lives because he was so often in jail.

She said their father would visit them whenever he was released from prison and promised to come back the next day but never did.

"There wasn't a year he didn't go to jail,'' Hickson said.

She said Maddison Hickson was the most hurt when their father failed to come back to see them because she was the one of his three daughters who most wanted a relationship with him.

"She was the one who sat on the kerb crying when he didn't come home,'' Hickson recalled.

The trial, which is expected to take three weeks, continues on Wednesday.

A mother of five is the latest victim of looting as thieves continue to target flood-impacted homes across Melbourne.

Thieves ransacked Lam Lgong's flood-ravaged home in Maribyrnong overnight, leaving her devastated.

"Please don't do it to us, just leave us alone," she said.

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"It's still not right to go in someone's property. Because that is their labour. They work hard for that."

Floodwaters left Lgong and her family with very little on Friday and she has spent the last couple of days removing soaked furniture and belongings.

"We're just gonna work hard and buy things slowly, like washing machine, fridge, whatever," she said.

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In Maribrynong, the smell of rotting hard rubbish is worsening every day, but that's not deterring looting opportunists.

It comes as a number of residents were targeted by looters yesterday, with the thieves stealing thousands of dollars worth of personal items.

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Aussie shoppers are being forced to find clever new ways to get more bang for their buck as inflation and cost of living pressures bite household budgets.

One option is gift cards, and Coles is offering discounts on their cards to use on anything from fuel to groceries to power bills.

The venture is the supermarket giant's attempt to ease the burden on Aussie households who are facing growing interest rate pressures, surging fuel costs and fresh produce prices which will soon skyrocket after the current floods.

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"These gift cards can be used wherever accepts a Mastercard. So it's essentially a Mastercard that you're purchasing," Martine Alpins from Coles said.

The supermarket giant is offering 10 per cent off $100 and $250 gift cards but customers do have to pay an admin fee.

All up, customers save $5.50 on a $100 card or $18.70 on a $250 card.

Aussies can purchase up to five cards, which would result in a saving of $93.50.

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Shoppers told 9News the discount on the cards would help their budgets "a bit".

"Cost of living has gone up by about 10 per cent so that brings it back down a bit," one said.

"The cost of living is definitely rising right now so any little help we can get is good," another shopper said.

The discount is available until next Wednesday.

The Coles gift card isn't the only discount around. Finance expert Effie Zahos said these cards can also be obtained through a health provider, telco or energy provider.

"You do need to search around a little bit and you've got to be a bit patient as well, but it's a great way to knock some dollars off that face value," Zahos said.

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NRMA members can buy discounted gift cards to be used at dozens of retailers including JB Hi-Fi, Rebel and Big W, with savings ranging from 3 to 10 per cent off.

"We've seen a 45 per cent increase in the uptake of these gift cards just in the last 12 months so their proving to be very popular as families are struggling with cost of living pressures," NRMA spokesperson Peter Khoury said.

Woolworths also has a gift card promotion where it is offering its Everyday Rewards members up to 2000 bonus points, which they can use to shave money off their next shop.

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