Australia's south-east on alert for flash-flooding after day of heavy rain
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Version 0 of 1. Large swathes of Australia’s south-eastern corner will remain on high alert for flash-flooding on Tuesday after separate storms brought heavy rainfall to parts of South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales. Related: Severe storm warnings for Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia - as it happened Emergency services have warned people to stay clear of the floodwaters after 63-year-old Max Loweke was killed when his bakery van was swept away in the flood waters of a swollen creek near Seymour, 111km north of Melbourne, early Monday morning. Loweke, who owned the local bakery and was on his way to work, became trapped when flood waters crossed the road and surrounded his car. The Victorian emergency services minister, Jane Garrett, said the tragedy was a reminder to other Victorians to be extra cautious. “We have got some very volatile weather in Victoria at the moment,” she told reporters on Monday. “It’s a tragic loss for that family, it’s also a tragedy for the SES workers who responded and we just don’t want to see that happen in Victoria again.” A flood warning remained in place for nearby Hughes Creek and parts of the Goulburn River catchment on Monday night, after the area received between 40 and 78mm of rain in 24 hours. The flood waters peaked at 2.8m overnight on Sunday. The Bega and Moruya River on the NSW south coast and southern tablelands were also under flood warning on Monday night, as rainfalls of between 125mm and 160mm caused them to burst their banks. The Bega River was expected reach 5.1m at Bega North at 10pm, while the Moruya River was expected to reach 4.4m at Wamban at 7pm. Newcastle and Maitland were also put on flood watch. Heavy rain in Sydney flooded a number of roads during peak hour, and washed out the second day of the Australia v West Indies Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The Bureau of Meteorology issued severe thunderstorm warnings for South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales overnight, with reports of hailstones and damaging winds in the Flinders Rangers in SA. Those residents of the bushfire-ravaged Victorian towns of Separation Creek and Wye River who had been allowed to return to their homes were told to prepare for a second potential disaster, with the BoM warning heavy rainfall could cause landslides and wash burned debris across roads and into water supplies. |