Menindee spends NYE on flood watch as record-breaking deluge hits

Residents of the tiny outback NSW town of Menindee face a nervous wait overnight as thousands of megalitres of water roar down the river towards them.

Residents of outback NSW face a nervous wait overnight as thousands of megalitres of water roar down the river towards them.

Rural properties around the town of Menindee – near Broken Hill in the state’s far west – were ordered to evacuate before New Year’s Eve, with the NSW State Emergency Services (SES) helping about 10 residents to leave their homes as of Sunday.

The Bureau of Meteorology warned from Monday the Darling River which flows near the town could peak at 10.7 metres – blasting past the previous record flood level of 10.47m in 1976.

As of Sunday afternoon the river remained at about 10.20m.

But concerns remain that 75,000 megalitres of water a day – enough to fill a fifth of Sydney Harbor – continue to spill from Menindee Weir into the Darling, bringing fears for later this week.

Menindee may reach major record flooding at 10.7m, exceeding the 1976 record, throughout the week

A NSW SES spokesman said it was understood 32 properties would be at risk of flooding if the record level was surpassed.

While the east of the state partied the night away, ­Menindee locals were fighting a tide of floodwater.

The floods along the Darling River weren’t triggered by recent rainfall but rather the flow-on effects from flooding in Gunnedah and Moree months ago, with water from many of the state’s flooding rivers converging into the Darling.

A spokesman for the NSW SES said 75,000 megalitres of water – equivalent to 30,000 Olympic-size swimming pools – was being released from Menindee Weir into the Darling River on Saturday with the Menindee Lakes over capacity.

Releases could increase through the first week of January depending on the inflow, the Bureau of Meteorology said.

Menindee was predicted to reach major record flooding on New Year’s Eve.

Around 31 low-lying properties in Menindee are in the danger zone and the town has been urged to evacuate, however many are refusing to leave.

After an all-day effort sandbagging on Friday, locals like petrol station owner John Coombes said the community was well prepared.

“Once the roads go, business could drop dramatically … it’s just hang around and wait and see,” he said.

“We are used to floods, but we didn’t get much warning about the extra water coming from the weir.”

Locals and SES volunteers have been sandbagging and door knocking in the area to prepare for the flooding.

“We’ve had water in our town for 12 months so we are used to having plenty of water around.”

The NSW SES is warning those who stay that the town could be flooded for up to two weeks.

Twenty SES flood rescue volunteers are on the ground ready to help flooded residents and a helicopter is on standby to ­provide food and essentials to those who choose to stay behind.

As of Sunday minor flooding had eased upstream of Menindee at Bourke while moderate flooding continues at Louth.

Major flooding continues at Tilpa and Wilcannia, where the prolonged peak of the floods continues to hang around.

Major flooding also continues along the lower Murrumbidgee River at Balranald in the Riverina district.