RAFTERY Road, between Seven Creek Drive and Arcadia Downs Drive, is the first road to be closed as water levels rise. Water from the Goulburn River has spilled into low-lying areas, submerging some of the pathways across The Flats between Shepparton and Mooroopna, which are also closed.
Greater Shepparton City Council is monitoring Watt Road and any potential flood risks in collaboration with emergency services. Accurate and up to date information on flood warnings and road closures can be found on the Vic Emergency App, which presently have issued a ‘Stay Informed’ alert across the north central district.
THE warning comes after Dartmouth Dam spilled over for the first time in 26 years last week. As of Sunday, September 25, Dartmouth Dam recorded 3,876,080 ML (100.51 percent full), compared to 3,028,223.05 ML (78.53 percent) for the same time last year.
Dartmouth Dam is the most upstream storage in the River Murray System and collects almost 10 percent of the system’s inflow. The Mitta Mitta River flows from Dartmouth Dam into the Hume storage, which is currently at almost 97 percent capacity.
The same data set, available from Goulburn-Murray Water’s storage levels webpage, shows that most water storages are over 90 percent full. This includes all Broken, Campaspe, Loddon and Bullarook Creek storages, as well as most of the Murray and Goulburn storages, including Goulburn Weir, Waranga Basin and Torrumbarry Weir, northwest of Echuca.
Earlier this month the Bureau of Meteorology raised its ENSO Outlook to La Niña, above-average rainfall is expected for northern and eastern Australia during spring and summer.
Residents are reminded not to use closed shared pathways or to drive through floodwaters as they are unsafe to travel, and to not walk on roadways as an alternative.
Council’s director of community, Louise Mitchell, reminds us that we have a role to play in keeping the community safe.
“The Vic Emergency app will provide up to date flood warnings within the region. Stay out of water that might be present on paths and roads
“Floods can occur quickly and unexpectedly due to heavy rainfall, so if you are driving, never drive through flood water as it only takes 15cm of flowing water to float a car,” Ms Mitchell said.
Current Emergency Information is available at emergency.vic.gov.au.
