First fires, now floods: region set for further wild weather

A region which is only just controlling wild bushfires is set to be battered by completely different weather on Wednesday.

Residents of one region are being warned of flooding just a day after hundreds of firefighters battled to contain bushfires in the area.

Major flooding is possible on Wednesday in Gippsland, eastern Victoria, with minor to moderate flooding likely from late Tuesday, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

“There is quite a lot of rainfall expected to fall over six to 12 hours,” BOM meteorologist Christie Johnson said on Tuesday.

“So even if it’s not that heavy rainfall where you get a huge amount in a short time, it could still be enough to overwhelm gutters and cause some flash flooding.”

This Severe Weather Warning is for heavy rainfall and damaging winds for people in East Gippsland, North East, West and South Gippsland and parts of Central, Northern Country and North Central Forecast Districts.

More info: https://t.co/T05ONtx8bBpic.twitter.com/6ZhWSt3o0I

— VicEmergency (@vicemergency) October 3, 2023

A severe weather warning is now in place for much of eastern Victoria. Picture: VicEmergency

A severe weather warning for heavy rainfall and damaging winds is now in place for eastern Victoria, with as much as a whopping 150mm of rainfall possible on Wednesday, according to VicEmergency.

The possibility of more extreme weather in the area comes after large extreme bushfires raged on Tuesday.

Residents near Briagalong and Loch Sport were warned it was too late to leave their homes and told to stay inside to protect themselves from two particularly strong blazes.

Firefighters from across Victoria had to be called to the area to tackle the fires, which were eventually contained but had yet to be brought under control as of Tuesday evening.

The fire in Loch Sport as seen on Monday night. Picture: Facebook

Another fire raged in nearby Briagolong. Picture: Supplied

The rain which helped efforts to control the fires could now be set to cause problems on Wednesday.

Residents were praised for being prepared and listening to instructions from emergency services which helped to avoid any loss of life in Tuesday’s fires.

“To the East Gippsland community, we thank you,” Country Fire Authority chief officer Jason Heffernan told a press conference on Tuesday.

“I believe it is through the actions of the community we haven’t seen major injuries or loss.”

Tuesday also saw extreme fire warnings issued in parts of NSW, with one expert predicting this was just the start of a bumper fire season.

“Intensifying heat waves and lack of rain have certainly brought forward an early start of the bushfire season,” said Professor Guan Yeoh from UNSW School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering.

“The return of El Nino will continue to exacerbate drier and hot weather conditions … we need to make necessary preparations for a hazardous bushfire season.”