Morning mail: thousands of homes in flood waters’ path, plan to end family violence, Xi cements power

Children negotiate flooded roads in canoes in north Shepparton as the flood waters rose on yesterday afternoon. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Good morning. Major flooding continues across Victoria, with large towns at risk of inundation as river levels continue to rise. Thousands are without power and more than 100 schools will be closed today. And today Guardian Australia launches a new podcast series Ben Roberts-Smith v the media, looking at the so-called defamation trial of the century.

Thousands of homes in Shepparton and other regional Victorian communities are expected to be inundated or cut off in the coming days amid the state’s worsening flood crisis. About 6,000 properties were without power yesterday and more than 9,000 people had applied for emergency support payments.