The Yarra Ranges was hit hard by flooding this year, with floods seeming to strike different townships back to back from October into November.
Yarra Glen clubrooms flooded
When Yarra Glen was hit hard by floodwaters in mid-October, the clubrooms of the Yarra Glen Football, Netball and Cricket Club were left worse for wear.
Yarra Glen Cricket Club President Kelly Coghlan said sitting in a flood zone is one of the downsides to living in such a beautiful part of the country.
“It has come up much higher than expected this time around, over the top of the deck right in through the clubrooms. We’ve got a hard layer of sludge right throughout the clubrooms and are awaiting an insurance assessor now, but their focus is obviously up north where it should be right now,” she said.
“Yarra Ranges Council’s asset protection group came through today [Thursday 20 October] and at this stage, we have no timeline as to when it might be fixed.”
Saturday 22 October saw a fair bit more rain hit the area, with 11.6mm recorded throughout the day, but luckily any further rain held off.
Ms Coghlan said every time there is heavy rainfall in Yarra Glen for a few days, the township expects to be flooded.
“It’s a yearly event just about, and as much as it can’t really get any worse at the clubrooms, one of the concerns is whether it is safe to start cleaning up or not, and we don’t know whether we will have to do it all again in a week,” she said.
Lilydale, Seville, Coldstream and Mooroolbark smashed
The Warburton Highway through Seville did not escape the torrential rain and flash flooding that hit Lilydale and the surrounding area on Tuesday 26 October.
Overall, close to 75mm of rain fell in around an hour and a half, with a five-minute window of rain falling at an astonishing 120mm per hour.
Lilydale SES Unit Controller Shaun Caulfield said the unseasonal rain was one of the heaviest and most intense downpours the region has seen in some time.
“About 40-50 properties have had significant water go through them and are going to have damage to carpets and flooring. We’re lucky at the moment we haven’t had anybody that’s needed to relocate from their residence but it’s going to be a significant repair bill for a lot of those homeowners.”
Lilydale SES responded to 210 jobs including 24 floodwater rescues as a result of the storm cell event.
Mr Caulfield said sadly they did see a lot of people that were still driving on flooded roads.
“The roads were already inundated with water and people were still making choices to drive into deep water, we had one instance of three cars that all driving to the same flooded road and all somehow got stranded,” he said.
Beresford Road and Cave Hill Road, Maroondah Highway outside Yarra Vally Toyota and Swansea Road near Lilydale Lake were the hardest hit spots in Lilydale, with Beenak Road in Wandin North, Warburton Highway through Seville, Ingram Road and Killara Road in Coldstream and Hull Road and Manchester Road in Mooroolbark among the other flooded areas.
Yarra Junction main strip underwater
Water rising to over a metre deep in some parts of Yarra Junction flooded buildings, lifted cars and caused widespread damage late into the evening on Thursday October 28 after heavy rain.
Local business owner Ash said when he arrived at his real estate agency, water poured out of the front door when it was opened despite sandbags placed at the entrance.
“It’s a mess, the whole place was full of water,” he said.
“It was pouring out of the power points, the carpet was knee-high with water.”
He pointed out a nearby creek runoff drain that was blocked with debris as a contributing factor in nearby businesses being flooded.
Local resident Glen said he spent an hour clearing the blocked drain and believes it should have been cleared after heavy rains on Tuesday 25 October.
“It wasn’t cleaned for six to 12 months and it wasn’t cleaned after the rain on Tuesday,” he said.
Yarra Ranges Council Director of Environment and Infrastructure Bill Millard said the drain “is owned by Melbourne Water and Council is liaising with them in relation to any support we can offer.”
“Due to the high demand on Council services with homes and businesses inundated, we are working with our contractors and outdoor staff to prioritise work as quickly as we can,” he said.
Upper Yarra SES described the water at the rear carpark as being well over a meter deep in sections. This water then flowed from the rear of the buildings, through the shops and out onto the highway.
One vehicle was lifted off the ground by the water, resulting in it having one set of its wheels on an embankment.
Melbourne Gun Club accessible only by boat
Extreme flooding hit the Melbourne Gun Club in Yering in late October, with the clubrooms and grounds having suffered major damage.
Club treasurer Ben Reed said the extent of the damages is unknown but the cost is estimated to be around half a million dollars.
“It’s still only accessible by boat, so we don’t know the full extent but it’s going to be pretty bad because it just went up over a metre in inside,” Mr Reed said.
All of the grounds at the not-for-profit club are completely underwater and all goods are expected to have been lost due to floodwaters.
The club will be closed for several months as a working committee starts to rally volunteers and labourers to prepare for what’s to come.
“I was devastated – everyone has just been in shocked. I’m sure there’s been a few tears with people by themselves, because it’s really just destroyed everything,” he said.
A fundraiser will be launched with a goal of $75,000 – the cost of restoring just one of the grounds and the machinery needed.
The club has eight grounds which are underwater.
Yarra Junction flood recovery
Yarra Junction businesses were left reeling after the flooding on Thursday 28 October.
Yarra Junction Medical Centre (YJMC) Practice Manager Alison Dajlan said they face a huge cleanup bill now.
“We’ve lost all of our flooring, had to cut plaster up to 300mm high and had to remove some insulation as well before you even consider the disruption to our services as well,” she said.
“When we heard about it we were absolutely shocked, it’s just heart-wrenching. To think we’d just built it back up again after having no doctors for a while, getting back on our feet and then this happens.”
Ms Dajlan arrived at the clinic at 10am and she and her husband immediately began to enact the emergency response plan.
The nearby Nancy’s of the Valley cafe was also struck hard by flooding, and owner Emily Davies said she was in the store when it all unfolded.
“We were under about a metre of water from back to front, we lost all of our stock and display products, pretty much all of our refrigeration and electronic equipment and waiting to hear some of our vintage furniture will have to be discarded,” she said.
“At this stage, we will not be able to trade out of this venue till at least the end of the year. We don’t know how long the repair and refit will take but hoping for the early stages of the New Year.”
