The northern Victorian town of Kerang will be isolated by floodwaters for a week as the state's flood disaster continues to unfold.
Victorian State Emergency Service chief operations officer Tim Wiebusch says a sandbag levee is expected to help keep the majority of Kerang dry, but with the Loddon River expected to peak Wednesday or Thursday the town will be cut off.
"We are asking the Kerang community to consider where they should now be moving to another location," Mr Wiebusch told reporters.
The state government has announced a $351 million flood recovery package to start the clean-up effort.
Premier Daniel Andrews says the disaster funding includes $165 million in emergency road fixes such as filling potholes and repairing surfaces to get people and freight moving.
"This is an initial amount of money and it will underpin those emergency repairs," Mr Andrews said on Monday.
More rain is forecast in the coming days and the floods are expected to impact the state's north for four-to-six weeks.
Federal Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said modelling indicated more than 9000 homes were inundated in Victoria's north and about 34,000 homes across the state could be inundated or isolated.
"It's quite likely we'll see a flood peak happen and waters recede, followed by another peak as different river systems come together," he told ABC TV on Monday.
The Goulburn River at Shepparton peaked overnight at 12.05 metres, below the forecast peak of 12.1m and the 1974 flood level of 12.09m.
"That 15cm makes a significant difference to the number of properties either isolated or impacted," Mr Wiebusch told reporters.
"We believe around 4000 properties there are now either isolated or have some levels of inundation."
Images show buildings in the middle of town surrounded by a vast inland sea of brown muddy water and residents using sandbags to protect properties.
At Rochester, where waters have receded to a moderate flood level, about 800 to 900 homes have flooded but it is too early for authorities to confirm the extent of damage.
A 71-year-old man was found dead in the backyard of his home at the town on Saturday.
Floodwaters have receded in Maribyrnong, where police confirmed an unoccupied house was looted on Monday morning by a man in high-vis clothing who fled in a car with another two men.
A warning has also been issued for the Wimmera River, with Horsham residents told major flooding is possible on Monday and into Tuesday.
The Campaspe River at Barnadown, Rochester Town and Echuca peaked on Monday morning with major flooding occurring - higher than in 2011.
The SES has received more than 6000 calls for help including more than 650 flood rescue requests since Wednesday, when heavy rainfall lashed the state.
Disaster recovery payments have been made available to residents in 23 local government areas and a 250-bed camp will open at the former Mickleham COVID-19 quarantine facility.
About 100 ADF personnel have been deployed to help with evacuations and sandbagging.
Dozens of schools were closed across the state on Monday and the Victorian health department has warned of the increased risk of bacterial outbreaks such as leptospirosis, which is caused when people come into contact with the urine of infected animals and can occur after flooding events.
