Before dawn on the day an enormous flash flood that flattened a rural village, emergency services feared the weather bureau's warnings were inadequate and rushed to issue evacuation orders.

A flood described by survivors as an "inland tsunami" razed much of the village of Eugowra, in central-western NSW, on the morning of November 14, 2022, killing locals Diane Smith, 60, and Ljubisa "Les" Vugec, 85.

A five-day inquest is examining the circumstances of their deaths, along with the lead-up to the flood, weather warnings and scale of the emergency response.

NSW State Emergency Service zone commander Brigid Rice was woken by a call from colleagues before 3am that day as a rising river threatened the city of Bathurst and floods engulfed the villages of Molong and Canowindra.

"There was a l

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