News

Moama mobilises as flood peak looms

By Josh Huntly

Oct 18, 2022

No go: Road closure signs on Blair St, Moama as the Murray River rises. Photo: Josh Huntly

Moama swung into action on Monday and Tuesday following news the Murray River is expected to peak at 95.9m.

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Tourists and caravanners were instructed to move to higher ground on Monday morning as rising floodwaters forced the evacuation of caravan/tourist parks and low-lying areas by 9am.

This included Murray River Holiday Park on Blair St, located adjacent to rising waters.

By Monday night, after a volunteer-led effort, a metre-high wall of sandbags lined the road to protect businesses from floodwater.

Great wall: The sandbag wall on Blair St in Moama.

Along the Murray River side of Meninya St, floodwaters began encroaching on businesses, many of which had closed their doors.

All-terrain: An amphibious vintage army vehicle was sighted on Blair St.

The sandbagging site at Jack Eddy Oval saw dozens of community members man shovels, churning an enormous amount of sandbags for properties around the area before bringing a close to operations at 9pm.

Team effort: The Moama community turned up in droves to produce sandbags at Jack Eddy Oval.

Outside Jack Eddy Oval, demand for sandbags was evident as ‘prepare to evacuate’ and ‘watch and act’ orders were issued for Moama on Monday.

Long queues of vehicles stretched out of the oval and on to Perricoota Rd as far as the roundabout as residents looked to protect their homes and businesses.

Staff shortages at Moama Woolworths resulted in reduced trading hours, and a large crowd gathered at the doors prior to its revised 10am opening to stock up on goods.

Submerged: Floodwaters surround the Kerrabee Soundshell and playground.

Reinforcement of the Moama flood levee also started on Monday, after a community meeting at Moama Bowling Club on Sunday revealed it was expected to withstand a one-in-a-100-year event.

But with the revised Murray River flood peak now set to reach a one-in-a-1000-year event and the levee facing its first big test since its construction, precautionary sandbagging saw the levee reinforced to 97m.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the south-bound lane on the Dhungala Bridge remained closed to traffic, while the Meninya St bridge remained open to local traffic in the hopes of restricting unnecessary travel.