By Tyler Wright
The Yarra Ranges was hit by wild weather in the late hours of Wednesday 29 November with damage to homes and vehicles across the region caused by fallen trees as well as power outages.
Emerald SES volunteers responded to 62 requests for assistance between 3pm and midnight; among those was one house written off in Olinda due to tree damage and around 20 homes affected.
“The jobs were coming in from Olinda down to Upwey, Tecoma, Belgrave, we had jobs in Cockatoo, we had jobs in Gembrook and we had jobs in Emerald,” deputy controller Olinka Edwards said.
“Majority of the nature of the calls was tree down on either road [or property].
“There were about 15 cars damaged.”
Ms Edwards said volunteers are always prepared for weather emergencies.
“We get information from the Bureau of Meteorology, and this gives us modeling as to the type of weather and where it’s coming from and what could possibly happen,” she said.
“That’s all part of our training to be ready to go.”
VICSES responded to 717 calls for assistance statewide on Wednesday.
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued severe weather warnings currently in place for heavy rainfall and damaging winds over parts of Gippsland and over the Otways.
Flood watches are also current for Gippsland and parts of northeast and southwest Victoria.
Senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology, Christie Johnson, said rainfall totals in the Dandenong Ranges and the Yarra Valley are not expected to be as large as those forecast in other parts of southern Victoria; particularly the Gippsland ranges and the Otways.
“Rainfall totals are expected to be around 5-20mm [Wednesday 29 November] and maybe 2-8mm [Thursday 30 November],” Ms Johnson said.
“We are more likely to see the upper end of those ranges on the southeastern side of the Dandenongs, while the Yarra Valley will be somewhat sheltered and may see lower rainfall totals.”
“We are, however, expecting quite windy conditions through the Dandenongs and Yarra Valley, and from a relatively unusual direction (southeasterly). The unusual wind direction combined with some rainfall may result in more trees down than we would normally expect with the forecast wind speeds, so the public is urged to take care while travelling.”
Thousands of Ausnet customers have been affected by power outages.
People in Cockatoo, Gembrook, Croydon, Seville East, Olinda, Mount Dandenong and Selby, were yet to be reconnected as of late afternoon on Thursday 30 November.
According to VICSES, resident can sandbag to ensure they are flood ready; although the process will not stop floodwater completely.
People can access sandbags at their local hardware store, or by enquiring with local council.
VICSES may establish sandbag collection points within impacted communities during significant events.
Current local sandbag collection points are also available from the sandbagging page, which can be viewed at ses.vic.gov.au/plan-and-stay-safe/sandbag-guide
Those in need of emergency flood assistance can call VICSES on 132 500.
If life threatening, call Triple Zero (000).
To stay up to date with the latest weather forecasts and warnings, visit the Bureau of Meteorology website at bom.gov.au, and local incidents and warnings through VicEmergency.
