Vic; Floods isolate Geelong

AAP General News (Australia)
04-24-2001
Vic; Floods isolate Geelong

MELBOURNE, April 24 AAP - Victoria's second city of Geelong remains almost cut off
today with flooding only slowly abating on the Princes Highway linking it to Melbourne.

Flood warnings also remain in place for the Barwon and Traralgon Rivers.

Some of Victoria's heaviest rainfall in 30 years covered the Princes Highway with floodwater
on Sunday and Melbourne-bound motorists were being diverted onto the Old Melbourne Road
at Lara.

The Bureau of Meteorology said Geelong and Melbourne had taken the brunt of the wild
weather which was due to abate later today.

Senior forecaster Richard Carlyon said yesterday that Victoria could expect drier weather
after today.

The low pressure which was responsible for the rain would move southwards across Tasmania
and away from the mainland later today, he said.

Meanwhile, Melbourne recorded its wettest three consecutive days since February 1972
on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Geelong received 149mm of rain between Sunday and Monday while the nearby Otway Ranges
collected 410mm.

The wet hit thousands of motorists hard.

Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) spokesman John Rees said the motoring body
experienced its busiest day on record yesterday.

He said by midnight last night the RACV had taken about 16,000 emergency calls.

State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers were also busy, with 700 calls for assistance.

SES spokesman Peter Cocks said 300 volunteers dealt mostly with problems caused by
flash flooding.

The Mornington Peninsula had received the heaviest battering over the weekend, with
Rosebud taking 155mm of rain on Sunday.

Water authorities said the rain had relieved Melbourne and Geelong's immediate water
problems but the falls would not eliminate the possibility of restrictions next summer.

The Thompson dam, which provides most of Melbourne's drinking water, had recorded 84mm
of rain between Saturday morning and Monday.

Rainfall had also been steady west of Melbourne, with the three dams that provided
water to Geelong and south-west Victoria recording up to 300mm since Saturday.

Barwon Water chief executive Dennis Brockenshire said the West Barwon catchment, in
the Otway Ranges, received 300mm of rain since 8am Saturday, with another two dams recording
levels of around 50 mm.

Mr Brockenshire said the rainfall over the last two days was equivalent to 15 per cent
of the area's yearly rainfall consumption.

Melbourne Water managing director Brian Bayley said the rainfall would ease the city's
water problems but the water system was just over half full - well short of the desired
70 per cent level.

AAP ra/cjh/de a

KEYWORD: FLOODS VIC DAYLEAD

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