Family watches cars, tents, wallets wash away in floods
Samantha Lock and Nick Wilson |
As Kelly Stanhope was celebrating her 20th annual camping trip to the Wye River on Victoria’s Surf Coast, screams began to fill the air.
Sitting inside her tent for a game of cards on Thursday afternoon, her daughter went out to investigate.
She returned with a warning: “I think the river’s about to burst”.
“We came out of our tent and within 30 seconds it went from our ankles to above our knees,” the Melbourne-based mum told AAP.
The family waited on a riverbank and watched floodwaters carry away their two cars, tents and camping gear.
“We couldn’t do anything. We were just pointing,” Ms Stanhope said.
On Friday, they returned to the campground and managed to salvage wallets, sunglasses and a still-functioning mobile phone.
“It’s disappointing. My son’s partner lost a car,” she said.
“We were hard hit but we’re safe and friends are on their way to take us home.”
The family is one of dozens caught unawares when record flash floods swelled a river to burst its banks at a popular tourist spot.
Recovery efforts are still under way after torrential rains quickly overfilled the Wye, Kennett and Cumberland rivers, carrying huge amounts of water downstream, swamping campgrounds and upending vehicles.
Multiple cars remain stranded in the surf as authorities estimate some 10 to 20 vehicles to have been lost.
As residents count their losses, the weather bureau and emergency services have faced questions over their preparedness.
Emergency Management Commissioner Tim Wiebusch maintained warnings were “adequate” and “as timely as can be”.
The Bureau of Meteorology issued a severe thunderstorm warning at 11.57am on Thursday, which was upgraded to include life-threatening flash flooding at 12.40pm.
A watch and act warning was issued at 12.58pm for the area.
Emergency alerts were also sent to more than 10,000 mobile phones and landlines, Mr Wiebusch told reporters on Friday, without stating when.
The first triple-zero call related to flooding at a Wye River holiday park went out at 1.08pm, followed by another at 1.20pm.
Asked whether locals were given sufficient warning, bureau spokeswoman Diana Eadie said the weather conditions were “extraordinary”.
More than 178 millimetres of rain fell in the area over a period of six hours, with the Lorne station registering its highest 24-hour rainfall since records began in 1884.
About 200 to 300 people are believed to have been displaced, with many of them sheltering with friends, family and support services.
Some 60 people sought formal lodging at local relief centres at Lorne and Apollo Bay.
One child was injured and airlifted to hospital.
Mr Wiebusch described the outcome as “very fortunate” given the severity of the flooding and the speed of the weather event.
AAP
