North Deniliquin residents are weathering a storm of emotions as the current flood crisis forces them out of their homes and businesses.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
With the Edward River rising up to 10cm a day toward a predicted flood surge peak of 9.6m later this week, an evacuation alert was issued for areas in north Deniliquin on Sunday.
Residents are being asked to get out now due to “dangerous” floodwaters, with the SES advising all homes be evacuated by 10am tomorrow.
The most concerning issue for authorities is septic and sewerage concerns as the water continues to rise.
Among those faced with the heavy-hearted task of leaving their home is David and Debbie St Leon.
The couple live in Hodgkins St, where the history of their home being exposed to floods has been documented in both photos and print dating back to 1917.
As they continued packing yesterday, the toll the situation is taking was evident.
Exhausted - physically and emotionally - the couple found it difficult to hold back the tears.
The couple’s home could potentially be inundated from two sides.
The water is rising quickly behind their home, which is the same water course flooding the Edward River Oval and homes along smart street.
There is also a threat of the Edward River crossing Davidson St, and further impacting their home.
They’ve been preparing for inundation since mid-last week, but frustratingly say their efforts were impeded when they could not obtain the sand and sandbags they felt they would need.
It changed when the Deniliquin community flood meeting on Saturday revealed the Davidson St area would undoubtedly be impacted.
A day later, evacuation warnings were issued for Hodgkins St and other streets which stem from Davidson St.
While holding back tears yesterday, Debbie confessed “our stress levels are off the charts, it’s just constant worry”.
Debbie and David both work from home, with the evacuation also cutting off their ability to earn an income.
They will also be forced to live apart, with Debbie staying with friends south of the Deniliquin National (Kolety) Bridge and Dave staying with friends in another part of north Deni so he can keep an eye on the house and those of his neighbours as much as a he can.
The St Leons say they made their first call for help on Wednesday, trying to contact both Edward River Council and the SES hotline number requesting sand and sandbags so they could prepare the best they could.
They were frustrated to “be told no”, Dave said.
“We were not a priority at that time, and were told we would be contacted later,” he said.
The couple attended Saturday’s flood information session intending to raise concerns with what they perceived as a lack of support.
Out of that meeting, and predictions for Davidson St discussed at that meeting, came a barrage of community support for the most impacted areas.
The St Leons specifically praised SunRice’s Deniliquin Mill staff - particularly Craig Bulmer - for providing surplus rice sacks (which need to be pierced to keep them from retaining air) to use as sandbags, and Tim and Shirlee Burge for organising and delivering a stockpile of sand.
“They (Tim and Shirlee) were unbelievable,” Dave said.
“Shirlee accessed the sand and helped Tim deliver it for our whole street.”
The St Leons also thanked Rod Priest for providing a digger and sandbag hopper which assisted so many is the Davidson St area, and to the large number of locals and emergency services personnel who volunteered manpower.
“The Western Australia guys (here on deployment to assist the NSW Rural Fire Service) were like machines and we cannot thank them enough; they worked tirelessly,” Dave said.
Davidson Sts roadsides were still teeming with volunteers - both official and unofficial - yesterday as evacuation efforts continued.
The swollen river has spilled onto the roadsides which surround Davidson St, in some areas as close as a metre to the the bitumen.
It is flowing just under the Brick Kiln Bridge at the northern end of the street, where the creek would normally be a barely visible trickle.
Earthen levees have been installed at certain points along the length of the street and its arterial road network, and all businesses and impacted homes are now marked by sandbags and red and white tape.
The North Deniliquin Rest Stop is completely submerged as water continues to rise from the river and Brick Kiln Creek, and through the roadside drains.
The hum of pumps can be heard across the area, and clouds of mozzies rise from the ground and vegetation with every movement.
While some businesses can continue to operate for the time being, others have made the difficult call to cease trading until the danger subsides.
Like those who live in the area, some businesses have started clearing out or raising the height of stock in anticipation of inundation.
Nutrien Ag Solutions branch manager Matt Tubb said everyone in the area is “preparing for the worst and hoping for the best”.
He said due to summer cropping requirements, Nutrien would continue to operate with a skeleton staff as long as they are allowed.
“It does hinge on whether Davidson St does close, but our customer base is working with us,” he said.
“We’ll have skeleton staff for at least a week, and obviously we’ve had to be very careful (with flood inundation preparation) because of the inventory we carry.
“We have sent fertiliser off site in preparation, and winter cropping products have also been moved off site.
“We still have access to summer cropping products.
“Our agros (agronomists) are still out on farms working with out customers.
“Our customers have been offering support with sandbagging and they have been very understanding, which is fantastic.”
• Anyone requiring crisis support can contact Accessline on 1800 800 944, Lifeline Australia on 13 11 14, BeyondBlue on 1300 224 636 or Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800. Resources and support information is also available at www.denimentalhealth.org.au.