Dramatic rescue on horse stud hit by rapidly rising waters

A key horse stud was the scene of a dramatic rescue as a swollen Goulburn River and rain deluge threatened livestock.

A plateau of high country on Darley’s idyllic Northwood Park, near Seymour, has saved some of the most expensive horseflesh on the planet.

Nestled on the banks of the Goulburn River, the horse and cattle property was scene to a dramatic rescue last week as employees worked through the night to ferry livestock to higher ground through rapidly rising waters.

James Manning, stud manager at Darley and Godolphin. Picture: Zoe Phillips

Stud manager James Manning said a number of calves were lost as floodwater engulfed over half the 728ha farm.

“We had put the cattle on high and dry country during Thursday that has never flooded before in anyone’s lifetime, including a neighbour who is 90-year-old. We thought that was high enough but we not expecting record floods and had to move them quickly,” he said.

“And at 2am Friday morning we were moving mares and foals out of yards that have a bit of a rise, but the water inundated those yards and a lot of the fences were just completely under.

“The value of these animals is phenomenal, we were just so very lucky to have gotten them to safety when we did. We know the river country does go under, but it was the height and distance from the river that we were not prepared for.”

Drone footage of the property. Picture: Zoe Phillips

James said while all 150-odd thoroughbreds on the property, owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, were safe it was also a slice of luck that he moved a crop of expensive yearlings to higher ground last Thursday.

“I did not want to risk being cut-off from them, not thinking that that section of the property would flood. But we moved them just in time because all that country went completely underwater,” he said.

The property was already saturated before the 158mm of rain that fell last week became run-off and a surge of water from a roaring Goulburn – then peaking at seven metres – spilt over the low country and joined with its internal billabong and creek systems.

Manning said fencing was also cut to save neighbours cows and cattle from properties downstream were wandering around on Northwood, as some of his were on nearby farms.

Unfortunately, two yearlings drowned on nearby Yulong Stud during a rescue of dozens of stranded horses.