Hundreds of properties are underwater or isolated and thousands of people remain without power, as the flood emergency across three Australian states worsens.
There are about 500 inundated homes and a further 500 isolated in Victoria alone, which has been hit hardest by the crisis – the worst in decades in many areas.
Premier Daniel Andrews said about 1500 displaced Victorians had already applied for emergency payments to cover accommodation, food and medical costs.
Across the state, about 4700 homes were without power on Friday afternoon.
“We’ll see more and more waters continuing to rise, more and more houses being inundated, more and more communities being closed off,” Mr Andrews said.
The Victorian government was preparing to reopen its COVID quarantine centre – mothballed just weeks ago – to accommodate those who had nowhere else to go.
“This has been a very, very significant flood event and it’s far from over,” Mr Andrews said.
Dozens of Melbourne residents were pulled from homes in the city’s inner north-west on Friday after the Maribyrnong river burst its banks.
Hundreds of homes have been inundated, and residential streets flooded. Emergency services used boats to rescue those trapped by the surging torrent.
Images online show cars submerged in water and garages overflowing with water.
Maribyrnong resident Matt Iozzi told the ABC he was shocked when police knocked on his door on Friday morning, telling him he had to leave immediately.
“I was actually shocked, the river has come up and completely swallowed the main esplanade street.”
“Everyone is in a state of ‘how is this actually happening?’.
“I spoke to a few neighbours, everyone was on their way out or planning to leave in the next 30 minutes after seeing how fast the water was rising.”
Anglers Tavern, on the banks of Melbourne’s Maribyrnong River, was partially submerged following the unprecedented overnight rain.
“At this stage we don’t have access to it,” a spokeswoman said.
“Obviously there has been flood damage to the venue and we’ll assess that once we have access – hopefully tomorrow, depending on the weather.”
The federal member for the Melbourne seat of Maribyrnong, Bill Shorten, said the situation was devastating.
“It’s really upsetting for residents in my local community,” Mr Shorten said.
“These are areas where I’ve lived for the last 30 years. The last big floods were in 1974, so for a lot of people this would be a new and devastating experience.”
State Emergency Service operations officer Tim Wiebusch said about 100 properties in low-lying areas in the suburbs of Maribyrnong, Ascot Vale and Keilor had been flooded.
In Melbourne’s outer-west, there was also a major flood alert for the Werribee River.
“We’re likely to see a peak this afternoon around 6pm with major flooding ensuing from around 2pm,” Mr Wiebusch said.
“70 properties will come under threat, along with a local shopping strip.”
Authorities issued an evacuation order for parts of Werribee, although it was downgraded to a watch and act later on Friday.
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A major flood warning has also been issued for the Yarra River, which was expected to peak at 9.2 metres at Heidelberg on Friday afternoon.
“Our flood emergency here in Victoria is continuing to escalate,” Mr Wiebusch said.
Elsewhere, there are still evacuation orders for towns across Victoria, including Rochester along the Campaspe River, the central goldfields town of Carisbrook, Skinners Flat in Wedderburn and Seymour on the Goulburn River.
In Rochester, many have sandbagged properties and left town but some were staying to protect their businesses, motel owner Meagan Keating said.
“We’re now just watching the water come towards us,” Ms Keating said.
“The anxiety is high … [because] as quick as the water is moving, it is a slow process, watching it come.”
The Victorian SES has responded to more than 2600 requests for help in 24 hours and rescued at least 200 people in two days.
At least one person was reported missing in central Victoria, although he was later found alive in the most fortunate of circumstances.
A Victoria Police spokesman said the man was rescued after “ignoring a roadblock” and driving his Toyota LandCruiser into floodwaters in Newbridge at 10.45am on Friday.
“His vehicle was washed down stream a short distance before colliding with trees,” the spokesman said.
The man was found by police about half an hour later, clinging to a tree branch.
Of potential concern for Victoria, more rain is forecast for next week.
“We are monitoring a low-pressure system, which has the potential to bring further rainfall across the north of the state,” a BOM spokesperson said.
“At this stage we’re not suggesting that we’ll see the same magnitude of rainfall that we have just seen recently … [But] we know that dams are full, so any further rain will potentially cause significant flooding.”
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NSW
Hundreds of residents have been evacuated and teachers are being driven to work in fire trucks as major flooding continues across central NSW.
About 250 properties are subject to evacuation or isolation orders in Forbes after the Lachlan River crept up to its major flooding mark on Friday morning.
Norm Haley, from Forbes Community Mens’ Shed, said some farmers had already been isolated for weeks after their driveways flooded.
“The big worry is what’s still up in the heavens that hasn’t fallen yet,” Mr Haley said.
Heavy rain and burst creeks have saturated rural properties surrounding Forbes for months, with farmers losing crops or unable to sow them.
Elsewhere, the cotton town of Wee Waa is again isolated, with an SES high-clearance truck delivering bread and milk.
The town has been affected by flooding for weeks. A shop owner said there were hopes the water would recede enough overnight on Friday to allow a grocery truck into town.
People in three areas of the Riverina city of Wagga Wagga remain under evacuation orders issued earlier in the week.
“Fortunately, the Murrumbidgee River peaked on Thursday and we’re starting to see the floodwaters decline in those areas,” SES spokesman Andrew Edmunds said.
Tasmania
Tasmania has been hit with record-breaking rainfall, with major warnings issued for rivers across the north and north-west.
Acting Premier Michael Ferguson said, while “hundreds” of homes had been evacuated, significantly fewer residents had used evacuation centres than in similar floods in 2016.
“There were very early warnings, very targeted messaging,” he said.
“We rewrote the emergency response book and it’s yielding dividends.”
The Bureau of Meteorology said there was widespread significant flooding across the north of the island state, extending into Derwent catchment.
The severe weather warning for heavy rainfall and winds across northern Tasmania has been cancelled. But rivers continued to rise, with floodwaters expected to move downstream throughout Friday and the weekend.
Flood warnings will be updated as the situation develops and peaks are forecast.
