Victoria could see ‘some of the largest evacuations’ in the state’s history as flood crisis continues
A man has died, hundreds of homes have flooded and more than 60 alerts have been issued by emergency services as a flooding crisis grips Victoria.
The crisis has turned deadly after a 71-year-old man was found dead in floodwaters in Rochester in the state’s north.
Kevin Wills, 71, was found in the backyard of his High Street property around 9.30am on Saturday.
Police said his wife found herself trapped but was rescued by emergency services and taken to a nearby relief centre.
As floodwaters continue to rise, emergency services chiefs have warned the state could experience “some of the largest evacuations” in the state’s history.
‘We’re not out of the woods’
Premier Daniel Andrews has warned Victoria is far from being “out of the woods” with more than 12 emergency warnings issued since 7am.
He warned communities such as Shepparton, Charlton and Echuca are “very likely” to see rising water and flooding over the next few days.
All three communities are being urged to evacuate, along with several others.
“The most important thing is that while the skies might be blue, there’s a massive amount of water in catchments that’ll be moving down rivers in the coming days,” he wrote on Twitter.
“That means this event is far from over.”
Andrews said around the state there are about 500 homes flooded and more which are inaccessible.
“Those numbers will rise,” he said.
Crabs wash up in suburban Melbourne as flood crisis continues
“We’ve got 13 relief centres open for families that can’t go home – and we’re working with the Commonwealth government to get Mickleham open so they’ll have a roof over their heads.”
He said around 3000 families have applied for emergency payments which are being paid “as quickly as we can”.
The premier also said he’s written letters to bank CEOs, asking them to defer mortgage payments for those impacted.
“They’ve agreed,” he said.
He expressed his condolences after the death of the 71-year-old Rochester man.
“I know how close-knit the Rochester community is, and this will be impacting you all,” he said.
“Our hearts go out to you.”
Meanwhile, an energy provider is warning if floodwaters reach “significant levels” and inundate substations at Mooroopna and Charlton “it could pose a serious safety risk, and customers could be without power for an extended period”.
More than 350 flood rescues
A renewed call for people not to drive through floodwaters and heed evacuation warnings has been issued.
“The consequences of not heeding a warning have been seen in some areas where we have responded to homes that were asked to evacuate and we have had to rescue people,” Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner David Clayton said.
Clayton said there have been more than 350 flood rescues so far.
“More than 200 have been to homes, 150 to people driving through floodwaters and 10 to capsized tinnies,” he said.
Clean up begins for residents in Maribyrnong
Residents along the Maribyrnong River are beginning the mammoth clean up after floodwaters peaked on Friday.
In Maribyrnong, 60 properties were flooded and the only way to access parts of the suburb was by boat.
Maribyrnong MP Bill Shorten said residents have a “very resilient spirit” as they face the daunting clean up effort.
One of the biggest challenges will be the smelly mud that is slathered across roads, homes and driveways.
“Mud is a beast when it gets across the floorboards and it’s smelly, it’s a big job to be done here,” Shorten said.
Shorten said the Maribyrnong River reached levels above residents’ heads but the speed at which it broke the banks was “shocking”.
Flooding crisis may ease for a few days before another storm hits
Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp said there will be stable weather over the next few days but on Wednesday a low-pressure system will hit the east coast.
“On Wednesday night, we could see falls in the north west and central Victoria of around two to 10mm,” he said.
“There could be some storm activity with heavier falls around 20mm.
“On Thursday, we could see rainfall increasing so five to 10mm as it moves across into central Victoria and the north-east.
“We could see localised falls of 20 to 30mm.
“Friday, it’s moving more across to the north east and we could see rainfall up to 50mm.”
Crisp said on top of the rainfall that has already occurred it could cause further flooding.
Meteorologist Jonathan How said the weather system will wreak more havoc next week.
“Even though we will see a few days of reprieve across Tasmania, NSW and Victoria, there is another weather system coming through from the west,” he said.
“That will start to produce showers and thunderstorms across South Australia and inland Queensland from Tuesday and then extend to the rest of the East Coast from Wednesday to Saturday.”
He added this weather system will bring renewed flooding for already saturated areas.
New South Wales
New South Wales currently has more than 60 weather warnings in place across the state.
As of 7pm on Saturday, this includes nine emergency warnings, 27 watch and act warnings and 28 advice warnings.
The NSW SES have directed people in parts of Narrandera South to evacuate due to impacts from moderate flooding, while emergency warnings are in place for parts of Forbes, in the state’s central west.
Several watch and act alerts have also been issued for southern parts of the state, with flooding expected along parts of the Murray River.
NSW SES said it is monitoring conditions at Moama and will issue warnings as the situation evolves.
SES volunteers have been kept busy with two flood rescues and 93 requests for assistance across the day.
