The deadly floods inundating homes in central and northern Victoria are not expected to recede for up to a week, as emergency services warn of some of the “largest evacuations that we have ever seen” in coming days.
Floodwater claimed the life of 71-year-old Kevin Wills, a respected former panelbeater, who was found drowned in his backyard in Rochester, nearly 200 kilometres north of Melbourne.
“We can’t emphasise enough that when we issue an evacuation warning that is serious. We are asking people to leave and not stay in their homes,” said Tim Wiebusch, head of the State Emergency Service. “They are in very flat areas so it takes time for water to be flushed [away] and for the river level to go down,” said Bureau of Meteorology senior hydrologist Yves Bessard.Echuca residents were told to prepare to be away from their homes for up to 10 days, as two swollen rivers bear down on the border town.
“You need to be alert to your conditions and need to be preparing to evacuate, particularly if you’re in areas within some distance of the river,” he said.With large regional towns on alert, Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner David Clayton also urged people to listen to the advice of emergency services before it was too late.
Residents in the town of Murchison, north of Seymour, were also urged to leave on Saturday as the Goulburn River threatened to reach 11.9 metres, just shy of the record of 12.22 metres.
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