The SES has warned the Bathurst community to brace for further flood activity in the coming months, with the Bureau of Meteorology [BOM] predicting an 80 per cent chance of above-average rainfall throughout spring.
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For the second time in six months, rising water levels in key local waterways has caused widespread flood activity across the Bathurst region throughout the week, closing key roads.
The Hereford Street bridge was closed late on Tuesday night as the Macquarie River reached a peak level of 4.68 metres at 1pm on Wednesday afternoon, and road closures were also enforced at Eleven Mile Drive, Ophir Road and parts of Perthville.
And with BOM predicting further rain on the horizon, SES Western Zone community capability officer David Rankine said residents should be prepared for further flooding events.
"What we experienced on Tuesday is the culmination of a season's worth of above-average rainfall, as it only took around 55 millimetres of rain in the catchment to push the Macquarie River's level over the edge," Mr Rankine said.
"Bathurst hasn't experienced such a year of rainfall since 2016, and because the catchment is completely saturated, there's nowhere for the water to go, so if we receive above-average rainfall throughout spring, the community should be ready to act on flood events."
Perthville resident Ken Hamer said the Queen Charlotte Vale Creek reached its peak level on Tuesday night, but had started to subside as of Wednesday morning.
"The creek didn't break its banks anywhere above Perthville, but I'd call it a moderate flood, as everything's extremely waterlogged," Mr Hamer said.
"Thankfully, the rising waters didn't test the new levees at Perthville, but if the creek level had risen another half-metre, we could've had a bigger problem."
Mr Rankine said the SES has received some positive feedback from the Perthville community regarding flood mitigation works, although many indicated more work is needed.
"SES crews reported minor flooding in low-lying areas of Perthville on Tuesday, and with the levels of water currently in key catchment areas around the region, it won't take much rain in future to cause flooding events across the Queen Charlotte Vale Creek system," he said.
Mr Rankine praised Bathurst Regional Council crews for working closely with the SES to keep the community informed regarding flood activity.
"Council were quick to shut the roads early, and we'd like to thank the community for heeding our 'if it's flooded, forget it' safety message regarding driving through floodwater," he said.
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