City yet to assess full flood damage

MAJOR flooding across Geelong late last week has affected low-lying parks, roads, and dozens of buildings, but the City of Greater Geelong says it cannot assess the overall extent of the damage until the floodwaters have receded.

The Barwon River peaked at 3.86 metres on Saturday but has been falling since then – it was recorded at 2.8 metres on Tuesday and authorities expect the level will continue to fall.

Along with repairs to roads and other public infrastructure, the city has identified impacts to public toilets, shelters, ovals, walking tracks, cycling tracks, and other sporting facilities.

Early indications are 37 city-owned structures have been affected, with the main sites being the Barwon Valley Activity Centre, Belmont Depot (where water has affected 10 buildings), John Landy Athletics Field, and Belmont Park Pavilion.

From October 13 to October 16, the city responded to 294 requests for service from people affected by the flooding. This included 124 drainage call-outs, 118 requests to repair potholes, 11 requests to repair pit lids, 15 requests for water over road signage, 11 requests to remove fallen trees, and 15 emergency call-outs.

The city is keeping its operation centre open to co-ordinate its activities with the state government and the State Emergency Service.

Geelong mayor Peter Murrihy said more than 100 city staff were responding to the flooding along with volunteers and other levels of government.

“Our key priority is supporting flood impacted communities, as well as finding and fixing potholes, and repairing road surfaces to make sure Geelong keeps moving.

“We’ll keep working with other levels of government to make sure support is available where it’s needed most.

“We recognise that many hard-working businesses have been significantly impacted by the flooding. We will seek to make contact with those businesses directly affected and link them into the relevant support and flood relief programs.

“The rivers are receding slowly so it will take some time before we are able to do a full assessment of the impact but at this stage the damage to city and community assets is likely to be significant.

“An initial review has identified a number of our buildings have been inundated and other facilities will be identified and assessed as the water subsides.”

The sandbag collection point at St Albans Reserve has closed but will be kept in readiness to reopen if sandbags are needed in the coming weeks.

To report debris or road damage, phone 5272 5272 or head to geelongaustralia.com.au

The city is asking the community to:

• Avoid riverwater, including swimming, fishing, and not using boat ramps if possible
• Review travel plans both within Geelong and to other parts of the state to ensure your journey is not affected by floodwaters
• Never drive, walk or ride through floodwater, and
• Be cautious as snakes have been displaced by the flooding and are seeking higher ground.

For the latest information about the flood situation, head to emergency.vic.gov.au

The Victorian government’s Flood Recovery Hotline can help people find available support – phone 1800 560 760.

Volunteering Victoria is co-ordinating statewide community volunteer efforts online at volunteeringvictoria.org.au