Please note: this is an old article
It was published in September 2010, so the information may be out-of-date.
Flood levels from the Broken River and Sevens Creek have peaked with many Greater Shepparton residents in low-lying rural areas cut off and a number of road closures in the Kialla Lakes area overnight.
The SES last night issued evacuation warnings in the Kialla Lakes and Taylors Estate area and a community meeting was held at Mooroopna this morning. The peak at Mooroopna is expected to peak at 11.1 metres later tonight or early Tuesday morning.
Council's Municipal Emergency Coordination Centre is providing around the clock support to the SES Incident Control Centre, relief centres are open at Shepparton Senior Citizens Centre and Murchison Community Centre, sandbags are available from Council's Doyles Road depot and the Shepparton Saleyards and Animal Shelter has the capacity to take stock or pets if needed.
Council's Flood Call Centre is also operating 24/7 on 1800 727 774 and maps showing the likely flood impact on individual properties are on display at Council offices in Welsford Street, Shepparton and on Council's website, www.greatershepparton.com.au/floods.
As the Goulburn River reaches its peak of 11.1 metres, it is estimated that up to 100 homes are likely to be inundated with flood waters and up to 600 homes isolated.
INFORMATION SUMMARY
Greater Shepparton City Council Flood Call Centre
Residents can contact Greater Shepparton City Council Flood Call Centre on 1800 727 774. The call centre is currently open 24/7. To date Council's Call Centre has received up to 1000 calls from residents seeking up to date information about the flood since Monday morning.
SES
The latest flood information is available from the State Emergency Service (SES) website www.ses.vic.gov.au.
• SES Flood Information Line: 1300 842 737
• SES Emergency Assistance: 132 500
• Life Threatening Emergencies: 000
Municipal Emergency Management Centre (MECC)
The MECC was established at 9.00am Monday 6 September and is operating 24/7 until further notice to coordinate resources and agencies to support the SES Incident Control Centre.
Flood mapping
Council, together with the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority have prepared maps that show affected houses at various flood levels. Residents are encouraged to view the flood overlay mapping and see how their house may be affected.
The maps are now available to be viewed at the Council Office customer service desk at 90 Welsford Street, Shepparton, or from Council's website, www.greatershepparton.com.au/floods.
Relief Centres
Murchison Community Centre, Watson Street, Murchison
• Residents of the Murchison Caravan Park who were last night accommodated at the Murchison Relief Centre have been relocated to short term accommodation.
• The Murchison Relief Centre will be closed from later today, and can be reactivated if needed.
Shepparton Senior Citizen's Centre, Welsford Street, Shepparton
• Operating 24/7 until further notice.
• Only a few residents attended the relief centre for queries overnight at Shepparton Senior Citizen's Centre.
Residents, planning on evacuating their home are to be aware relief centres provide only basic services and those that can are encouraged to stay with family and friends.
Residents who have self-evacuated are encouraged to register at a relief centre to ensure emergency resources focus on properties with people still in them and to register for hardship grants if eligible. Registration at a relief centre also means any family or friends can check in to make sure people are ok.
Recovery Centre
A Recovery Centre has been set up at the Shepparton Senior Citizen's Centre, Welsford Street, Shepparton.
The Recovery Centre services those people who have been affected by flood and may require assistance in the medium to long term, including help in accessing grants, assisting people with special needs to clean up their property and also provides emotional, health and wellbeing support. Council, Centrelink and Department of Human Services will provide services at the Recovery Centre, which is open from 8.15am-5.00pm.
Emergency relief
A Case Management Service is available for people requiring assistance. For details please call Council's Flood Call Centre on 1800 727 774 or call in to one of the relief centres. Emergency hardship grants are available to help meet short term needs for people who have had to relocate temporarily due to the floods.
Roads
Closed
• Channel Road near Shepp-Euroa Road
• River Road near Doyles Road
• Gordon Drive north of Eildon Court
• Archer Road - South of Kialla Lakes
• Archer Street between Broken River Drive and Kialla Lakes Drive
• Kialla Lakes Drive (between Archer Street and Waranga Drive)
• Raftery Road, Kialla
• Watts Road, Shepparton/Mooroopna
• Bridge Road, Toolamba
• Union Road, Shepparton (from Goulburn Valley Hwy to Central Kialla Road)
• Mitchell Road, Kialla
• Midland Highway, between Shepparton and Benalla
• Tom Collins Drive, Shepparton
Reopened
• Shepparton-Euroa Road
• Shepparton-Violet Town Road
• Dookie-Devenish Road near Dookie-Nalinga Road - Dookie College traffic excepted.
Flood waters are not expected to close The Causeway at Shepparton/Mooroopna with a peak expected well below the 12.4 metres needed for a closure.
Other Road Closures can be found at:
• www.ses.vic.gov.au and
• http://vicroads.vic.gov.au
Road safety
Road conditions are changing regularly. Motorists are encouraged to check local road conditions before travelling. Police are also advising motorists to take care and be on the lookout for wildlife who are seeking higher ground.
Schools
For the information about school closures visit www.education.vic.gov.au.
Guthrie Street Kindergarten, Shepparton, Guthrie Street Primary School, Shepparton and Wanganui Park Secondary College Year 11 will be closed on Tuesday 7 September.
For the latest information about possible road closures affecting school bus routes see the Flood Traffic Alert section of the VicRoads website, www.vicroads.vic.gov.au.
Sandbags
Sandbagging will be used to protect emergency services such as: hospitals, council, police station and sewerage. Residents whose homes are in threat of flooding, can collect sandbags from Council's Doyle's Road Complex, Doyles Road, Orrvale. Residents are limited to a maximum of 20 sandbags per household. Council has given out more than 10,000 sandbags to residents, at 1.30pm today. Army personnel have been sent to Council's Doyle's Road Complex to assist with the sandbagging.
Water
At this stage there is no impact on drinking water for residents connected to town systems. People who draw water from other sources are advised to boil the water for three minutes before drinking.
The SES is advising residents in areas likely to be affected by flooding to place plastic bags partly filled with sand or soil over any drainage holes inside their house such as sinks and toilets. It is also important to do this to drainage pits and vents outside the house to prevent unclean water from entering the town drinking water system.
Domestic Animals
Greater Shepparton Animal Shelter, located at Wanganui Road, is housing pets that may need to be evacuated because of flooding free of charge.
Stock
Shepparton Regional Saleyards, located at the corner New Dookie Road and Wheeler Street, is housing farming stock free of charge. At 1.30pm today, the Saleyards is caring for seven pens full of stock that have been dropped from farms in low lying areas.
Possible effects to waste services
Council advises that there may be difficulties in collecting waste kerbside services in flood affected rural areas. Properties that are not able to be accessed because of floods will be collected at a later time. Special arrangements will also be made available for any properties inundated with water after the flood waters begin falling and they are able to access their properties.
Facility Closures
Aquamoves Lakeside Shepparton is closed until further notice.
Door knocking
Yesterday the Army doorknocked 500 homes to alert them to the impeding flood in their area, five people chose to relocate because of the information.
Piano Awards
The Australian Piano Awards are on this weekend and will proceed. Road access from Melbourne and surrounding regional areas is open in most cases.
Water storage levels
To find out information on latest storage levels in the Goulburn and other regions visit http://www.g-mwater.com.au/water-resources/storage-levels.
Media updates
Tune into local radio stations for regular community updates:
• ABC Goulburn Murray (emergency broadcaster) 97.7fm
• Star FM 96.9fm
• 3SR 95.3fm
• One FM 98.5fm
Or catch up on local daily flood information via:
• Shepparton News - daily edition
• Channel 9 - WIN News nightly at 6.30pm
Community meetings
SES, together with Council and other emergencies services, has held community meetings at:
• McIntosh Centre, Shepparton Showgrounds - 10.00am Sunday 5 September
• Riverside Plaza Community Centre, Melbourne Road - 8.00pm Monday 6 September
• Mooroopna Community Hub, Morrell Street - 9.30am Tuesday 7 September
For more information about flood visit:
• SES Flood Information Line on 1300 842 737 (1300 VIC SES) www.ses.vic.gov.au
• Greater Shepparton City Council Flood Call Centre - 1800 727 774
• Council website www.greatershepparton.com.au/floods