flash flooding threatens regional Victorians after intense rainfall
Residents in Victoria’s north are being warned to stay indoors as “life-threatening” flash floods and heavy rainfall threaten their communities.
A severe weather warning is in place for large areas of Victoria’s north, with Mildura recording almost half of its normal annual rainfall total since Saturday.
Saturday’s flooding caused 66 millimeters to fall in the regional city, followed by another 83 millimeters of rainfall after 9am on Sunday, leading to flash floods and inundation of homes.
The State Emergency Service received more than 110 calls for help in Mildura between noon on Sunday and 7am on Monday, and a further 160 in the rest of the state. 96 of the calls were related to flooding, 93 to downed trees and 57 to building damage.
Up to 80 millimeters of rain fell on other parts of northern and western Victoria between 9am on Sunday and 7am on Monday.
Tutye, west of the Mallee town of Walpeup, recorded 91 millimeters of rain since Sunday morning, while Kerang recorded 80 millimeters of rain.
Six-hour rainfall totals of up to 100 millimeters were possible in some parts of the state on Monday, with the Bureau of Meteorology warning that locally heavy rainfall could lead to “dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding”.
Meteorologist Dean Narramore said rainfall began clearing the Mallee area around 8am on Monday. Age – but the danger is not over yet.
“The rain will continue across central Victoria, then turn towards northern Victoria over the coming hours and then move into north-east Victoria this afternoon, clearing most of the state by this evening,” Narramore said.
The meteorologist said the humidity in Melbourne would also disappear from late Monday into Tuesday.
A severe weather warning was in force for parts of the central, north central, north-east and Wimmera regions, along with the North Country and Mallee.
People in and around Mildura, Swan Hill, Bendigo and Hopetoun have been warned to prepare to take shelter in case of thunderstorms on Monday morning and six-hour rainfall totals of between 70 millimeters and 100 millimeters.
Narramore said showers and storms were forecast to continue in Victoria’s far east on Tuesday before sunshine returned to much of the state on Wednesday and into the long weekend.
A number of advisory-level warnings for minor to moderate flooding remained in force in northern Victoria on Monday.
The state’s south was spared heavy rain from Sunday to Monday, with between five and 10 millimeters falling, including metropolitan Melbourne.
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