Eugowra flood: Locals furious about lack of flood warning and response

Traumatised Eugowra locals are demanding to know why a flood warning was so inadequate and why they were ignored by emergency services when a wall of water hit their town.

Chloe Henry, her son Chicago and mum Alana were waking up on what they thought would be a normal Monday in Eugowra when the warning came in about 7am that a flood was on its way.

But there was no mention of how big it was going to be or how fast it was moving.

They started preparing their property and helping their neighbours when the first wave struck about 8am, followed just five minutes later by an even bigger one.

Chloe was out the back of the house, moving things to higher ground in the shed, while her mum Alana was helping a neighbour down the road, and Chloe’s stepfather was taking little Chicago to the designated safety zone at Eugowra Showground.

“When that first wave came it was at my knees and within five minutes there was another up around my chest,” Chloe said. “I thought I was going to drown and that I was gone. I was just thinking: ‘Take me and not my little boy’.”

Chloe Henry and mum Alana were separated by the floods, which took them by surprise. Pictures: Dean Marzolla

What she and the other 700 or so residents of the tiny central west town did not know was that heavy rainfall the day before had overloaded Wyangala Dam and it was forced to spill, releasing more than 230,000 megalitres of water into the already flooding Lachlan River.

“It just happened so quickly and truly came out of nowhere,” Alana said.

“I was pushed home by the water and then all of a sudden it was up around my chest — I had to climb up on the kitchen bench.”

For the family, like the rest of Eugowra, the only place to go was up, with people getting onto roofs and clinging to power poles and street signs.

Chloe made her way to the roof of the shed, terrified that her mother and son were in trouble and unable to communicate with them. Then she heard a screaming elderly couple trapped inside their home by the water.

“I called Triple-0 and told them but no one came for seven hours,” she said. “I was alone up there and those poor people were trapped up to their chests in water.”

Narelle Shaw and daughter Isabel saw their Forbes home hit by the second flood in two weeks. Picture: Dean Marzolla

Meanwhile, Alana was shocked to see a young family in a car float into her front yard. She helped them up onto her roof.

“I was just waiting for the house to go from under us,” she said. “They (other houses) were just flying by and I thought we were next.”

But, after an anxious wait in scorching heat on a hot tin roof, a helicopter finally arrived and Alana was winched to safety.

“There was no phone service, so all day we had been without communication,” Chloe said.

“When I saw that helicopter pick mum up I finally felt a bit of relief, that was the first time I knew she was safe.”

The pair said if the water had come just a few hours earlier, hundreds would have been died.

“It would have been night time, you wouldn’t have known,” Alana said.

The SES ferry transports people across Forbes. Picture: Dean Marzolla

As the water receded, the devastation was revealed on Tuesday morning. The town had been turned upside down.

Homes were ripped from their foundations, cars flipped upside down, furniture and debris littered on every road. People were left without clothes, phones, or a bed.

Muddied and destroyed homes showed how high the water rose, with dirty water lines reaching above doors and windows in some areas.

The water had also brought an enormous canola crop with it, leaving it tangled and matted plants around almost every surface.

In a symbol of resilience, the town’s Eugowra Golden Eagles footy jersey was hung outside of homes and local businesses. “It’s our message of pride for this little town,” one local said.

As helpers started to hurry into the little town, anger and frustration started to erupt among traumatised locals, who felt they were ignored by emergency services when the wall of water hit.

“There were so many processes for us to go through just to get a helicopter here,” Grant Jones said.

“We had people hanging off trees and roofs and it was an eternity before anyone listened to us. It’s like they didn’t care or didn’t believe that the flood had really happened.”

The body of a man believed to Ljubisa Vugec has been found.

Dianne Smith’s body was found on Wednesday.

There was tragic news late yesterday, after a body, believed to be that of 85-year-old Ljubisa “Les” Vugec, was found. He was last seen at a home in Evelyn St, Eugowra. A body was found on the outskirts, near Casuarina Dr.

This would be the second person confirmed killed in the floods after grandmother Diane Smith, 60, was found dead on Wednesday. It is believed she drowned while trying to swim to safety.

Just about everyone in the town wants to know why the warning they received was so inadequate but the authorities are not commenting, beyond the line that this was a “freak incident” and help arrived as soon as possible.

After he was confronted about the situation by angry locals this week, Premier Dominic Perrottet said the government would look into the concerns about response time.

“There’s always lessons to learn … but we have to appreciate that when these freak events happen so quickly, it’s always going to be difficult and a challenge,” Mr Perrottet said.

“We had 14 aircraft in the sky rescuing people. I go back to Lismore (where) that didn’t happen.

“On Monday, I was immediately on the phone to the acting prime minister and that approval from the Australian Defence Force occurred straight away … that’s something we haven’t seen in the past.”

One of the many flood-damaged homes in the town. Picture: Dean Marzolla

Although volunteer helpers have poured into the town, locals were doing most of the clean-up themselves, with Mr Jones organising bobcats and loaders. “If you think it’s bad now, you should have seen the town on Tuesday,” he said on Friday. “It’s gut-wrenching to see our town like this.”

Still without power in most places, locals are relying on the goodwill of others for a place to stay and hot food.

After wrecking Eugowra, the water moved to Forbes, flooding homes and businesses for the second time in two weeks.

Residents there were warned to prepare for the town’s worst flood in 70 years, set to beat the 1952 record of 10.8m. By Tuesday Forbes was a town of threes – cut into a north, south and CBD zone. The only way to get around was via an SES ferry service.

It was an anxious wait as the water rose, peaking on Thursday at 10.7 metres, just shy of the 1952 record.

Despite that, an inland sea still rushed through the heart of the town and hundreds of homes were again inundated with brown flood water.

Eugowra’s clean-up is under way. Picture: Dean Marzolla

Narelle Shaw spent a full week cleaning after the last flood two weeks ago. Just two days after she packed up her cleaning supplies her home was again well over metre underwater and her newly renovated kitchen again a disaster zone.

The water has been slow to drop and the SES expects it will stick around for at least another day. Most homes are not insured for flood damage due to the huge premiums.

“On top of your rates and bills it’s just too much, you can’t afford it,” Ms Shaw said.

In a further blow, other residents in the 2871 postcode started receiving letters from their insurers notifying them they would no longer be covered for flood damage.

With flood insurance reaching up to $40,000 for residents in areas around Forbes, Mayor Phyllis Miller said the government needed to step in.

“We are going to have to look at how we accommodate these people who inherently live in flood-prone areas,” she said. “There needs to be assistance or a new insurance scheme that will cover them until they are rebuilt.”

Yesterday, teams were starting rapid damage assessments in the Forbes area, with locals facing weeks, and even months out of their homes.

to help eugowra: https://fundraise.givit.org.au/fundraisers/EPPA/eugowra-flood-appeal

TOWN IS PRAYING WALL CAN SAVE IT

The “Great Wall of Condo” may be all that is stopping Condobolin from becoming the next Eugowra, as the town braces for its worst ever flood.

Condobolin, west of Forbes, is preparing for the Lachlan River to hit 7.8m, its highest level since 1894.

Low-lying homes in the district are already under water and the community has been warned to prepare for evacuation and possible isolation.

A makeshift 4m-high levee surrounds the town centre and is the only thing separating the inland sea from homes and businesses.

The “Great Wall of Condo” was built from sandbags and dirt by locals and volunteers who have been frantically preparing since Forbes went under water last week.

Thunderstorms and damaging winds loomed over the Central West on Saturday with SES volunteers working to tie down items and secure properties in Condobolin and along the Lachlan River.

“We are not expecting large amounts of rain in this system, but it doesn’t take a large amount to create a problem for the floods,” Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Helen Reid said.

“It’s bringing damaging wind gusts, which is more likely to be a problem tomorrow.”

In Forbes the community is praying the gusty winds don’t dampen the clean-up mission, which starts in earnest today.

With water slowly receding, rapid damage assessment teams will be going between homes and businesses to determine what can be saved.

Crews from the SES, RFS and Fire and Rescue will follow to help locals begin moving rubbish and hose out buildings.

Forbes Shire Council Mayor Phyllis Miller said she hopes the town will finally be unified after it was divided by the floods.

“We have our fingers crossed by tomorrow morning you will have access to the CBD and be joined up as one community,” she told residents.

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Originally published as Eugowra flood: Locals furious about lack of flood warning and response