Flooding strands Victorians as heavy rains create a Christmas washout
A man has died after being struck by a falling tree branch in Victoria’s east, as severe thunderstorms are expected to lash parts of Melbourne on Boxing Day.
A man has died after being struck by a falling tree branch in Victoria’s east, as floods and severe thunderstorms lashed the state overnight.
The Herald Sun understands the man was camping on a private property on Rusks Rd in Caringal, which belongs to a hazelnut farm, when a tree struck him in the head about 9am on Tuesday morning.
Emergency crews tried to revive him but he died at the scene.
The Bureau of Meteorology issued a severe thunderstorm alert on Tuesday for “damaging winds and heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding”.
It is forecast to hit Greensborough, Lilydale and Ringwood at 2pm and Caulfield, Glen Waverley, Melbourne, Preston and Sunbury at 2:30pm.
Heavy rainfall and hail is also expected to slash Maryborough, Castlemaine, Kyneton, Ballarat and Bacchus Marsh.
Yanakie in South Gippsland copped 45.5mm in two hours to 11:45am on Tuesday. Traralgon South recorded 40.8mm in two hours to 11:45am and 75mm was recorded at East Sale in 3 hours to 8:15am.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning current for parts of #Melbourne: https://t.co/HLs2UYFQyQ#Melbweather#melbourneweather#AUSvPAKpic.twitter.com/ZaxldTTurP
— Bureau of Meteorology, Victoria (@BOM_Vic) December 26, 2023
It comes as Melbourne recorded one of its wettest Christmas Days on record.
Homes and businesses across Wedderburn, Shepparton, Echuca and Kyabram were severely damaged by flood waters and storms.
Some properties’ roofs caved in as a result of the wild weather, prompting 499 calls for help to the SES in 24 hours from 9am Monday to 9am Tuesday.
Requests for assistance included building damage, trees down and flooding from across Victoria, including 97 in Melbourne’s south, 96 in Victoria’s northeast, 94 in the Loddon Mallee and 74 in Melbourne’s north.
Christmas campers were also warned to stay away from rivers and large trees after Port Philip Bay, Wilson’s Prom, the Mornington Peninsula and surf coast were lashed with heavy rain and strong winds on Monday night.
Thunderstorm warnings were also put in place for popular camping spots Grampians, Echuca and Swan Hill.
“Exodus from Wilson’s Prom last night, the cabin window blew in, the furniture blew away twice then 10 mins later we got a flood and storm alert for last night til Wednesday,” one camper wrote on social media.
“Left late last night as did 9 other families. Back in Melbourne now. Certainly a dramatic Xmas.”
Three people also had to be rescued after they became trapped in a house in Carrajung Lower.
This year’s Christmas Day was one of the wettest on record after more than 30mm fell on parts of Melbourne when severe storms began on Christmas Eve, with more expected in coming days.
Meteorologist Joanna Hewes from the Bureau of Meteorology said just 3 per cent of Christmas Days had seen more than 10mm of rainfall since the bureau’s records began more than 160 years ago.
“The highest rainfall that we’ve seen in Melbourne on Christmas Day was 35 years ago in 1988 and it was 48.6mm,” she said.
“Only 3 per cent of Christmas Days on the records for Melbourne, and we’ve been keeping them since 1855, have seen more than 10mm of rainfall. It is definitely unusual to see this much rain on Christmas Day.”
As Victoria suffered with rain, some parts of NSW were blanketed in hail amid chaos at Sydney Airport when runways were flooded.
Ms Hewes said Victorians could likely look forward to warmer and drier weather just in time for the New Year celebrations if thunderstorms eased off around the state on Boxing Day.
“It is looking like a much more pleasant New Year’s Eve than it has been on Christmas Day,” she said.
Temperatures are expected to reach a top of 24C with a 30 per cent chance of rain.
The high chance of showers on Boxing Day will continue into December 27, when temperatures will peak at 22C.
Cloudy skies with a 30 per cent chance of rain are expected between December 28 and December 30.
Several Victorian towns set rainfall records on Christmas Day.
Dunolly, 180km northwest of Melbourne, saw 96.2mm of rain by Christmas morning, the area’s highest ever daily rainfall.
A record 64.2mm had fallen in Korong Vale in Victoria’s northwest and Swan Hill was pelted with 49.6mm of rain.
Wedderburn’s main sports oval was completely underwater after the small town was hit by floods. Donaldson Park, home to the local Redbacks footy team, resembled a lake despite the worst of the flooding beginning to subside by Monday afternoon.
Several properties were affected, with visible damage to gates and fences along with large puddles of water in gardens and yards.
Colin Mills said his house escaped the floodwaters but water had swept through his property and left his garden shed submerged.
He said clearing the water from his yard had required plenty of help from his extended family.
“We haven’t even started the shed yet,” Mr Mills said.
Mr Mills’ daughter Rebecca helped her father with the huge clean-up effort after arriving from her home in NSW to celebrate Christmas.
But the Mills family remained in high spirits, cracking jokes at each other’s expense to make light of it all.
“We used to live in Gippsland and every time Rebecca visited she used to bring floods with her,” Colin said.
“We never thought she’d be able to bring them up here. Some effort.”
Local resident Jenny said it was the worst flooding she’d seen in the town since moving there in 1981.
“I was just sitting at home hoping the rising water wouldn’t start to come inside,” she said.
Floods damage homes in Victoria’s north
Homes and businesses in Shepparton, Echuca, Kyabram and Wedderburn have been damaged by floodwater, with a Watch and Act Warning issued for Wedderburn on Monday morning.
An SES spokeswoman said there had been 573 calls for assistance in Victoria since severe rainfall began about 5pm on Christmas Eve.
Echuca has reported 50 calls for help, the highest number of calls in the state, amid storm and rain damage causing the roofs of several properties to cave in.
Flood Watch – Advice for the Upper Murray and Mitta Mitta Rivers. You should Stay Informed. For more info: https://t.co/JzypD3mM7C#vicfloods
— VICSES News (@vicsesnews) December 25, 2023
Severe Thunderstorm - Advice for East Gippsland, North East and Northern Country. You should Stay Informed. For more info: https://t.co/fRP6z3UiwO#vicstorms
— VICSES News (@vicsesnews) December 25, 2023
The Wedderburn unit had received 16 calls for assistance on Christmas morning after properties in the town’s central district suffered storm damage and fallen trees blocked access to roads.
The Wedderburn oval was completely under water and Donaldson Park, home to the local Redbacks footy team, resembled a lake even as the worst of the flooding appeared to have subsided by Monday afternoon.
Several properties were affected, with visible damage to gates and fences along with large puddles of water in gardens and yards.
Some Wedderburn locals tried to make the best of a bad situation, kayaking on the flooded footy oval on Christmas morning.
Although by Monday afternoon the worst of the flooding had abated and the rain had stopped, locals were bracing for the possibility of more damage if the wet weather persisted into Boxing Day and beyond.
Local resident Jenny, who did not wish to give her last name, said it was the worst flooding she had seen in the town since moving there in 1981.
The water had covered the sidewalk outside her house early on Monday and left her terrified her house was going to be flooded.
“I was just sitting at home hoping the water wouldn’t come in,” she said.
Luckily for Jenny, the water didn’t make it inside but her neighbours were not so fortunate.
They spent Christmas morning emptying water from their front yard using buckets. Fortunately their house itself was not flooded with only a bit of water making it under the garage door.
Loddon Shire Mayor Gavan Holt said he had not been able to access the township to assess the degree of destruction.
He said a municipal emergency response officer was trying to contact residents to ensure their safety and determine their need for assistance.
“We’ve had 175ml overnight. That’s a lot of water for us,” he said.
“And it’s still raining so we don’t know how much more is coming.
“To put that in perspective, in the 2011 floods we had 200ml in a couple of days.”
Cr Holt said the Calder Highway was closed between Charlton and Bridgewater, and though there was no danger to lives they would be preparing to relocate any residents whose houses were destroyed.
Wedderburn business owner Cass Reeves said her whole family had abandoned their Christmas to protect her home from floodwaters.
She said the children, including her 12-week-old daughter, would miss out on any festive celebrations.
“Her first Christmas is nothing,” she said.
“My ten-year-old nephew is outside making sandbags.”
The mother of two had made flour “Santa footprints” for the children to find, which had to quickly be vacuumed up to prevent it mixing with any water.
She said the water was moving “incredibly quickly”, covering the 50m from the road to her house in the space of an hour and trapping her animals on the property.
“I’m hoping they’re all alive then all this is over,” she said.
“This is the worst it’s been in the ten years I’ve been here.”
Colin Mills said the water had swept through his property and left his garden shed underwater.
Thankfully his main house was unscathed but it had taken him and his extended family more than an hour just to clear the water from their backyard.
“We haven’t even started the shed yet,” Mr Mills said.
His daughter Rebecca was visiting from New South Wales for Christmas.
“I arrived late yesterday (Christmas Eve) just when the rain started,” she said.
Despite the Christmas to forget, the Mills family were in high spirits cracking jokes at each other’s expense.
“We used to live in Gippsland and every time Rebecca visited she used to bring floods with her,” Colin laughed.
“We never thought she’d be able to bring them up here. Some effort!”
Some Wedderburn locals tried to make the best of a bad situation, kayaking on the flooded footy oval on Christmas morning.
Although by Monday afternoon the worst of the flooding had abated and the rain had stopped, locals were bracing for the possibility of more damage if the wet weather persisted into Boxing Day and beyond.
Heavy rainfall is expected to lash the state throughout the holiday season.
A high chance of showers on Boxing Day will continue into December 27, when temperatures will peak at 22 degrees.
Cloudy skies with a 30 per cent chance of rain is expected between December 20 and December 30.
While Christmas will prove to be a washout for many, rainfall is set to ease as temperatures rise just in time for the new year.
A top of 24 degrees is slated for New Year’s Eve with a small chance of a thunderstorm later in the day.
Originally published as Flooding strands Victorians as heavy rains create a Christmas washout
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