Wagga's emerging flood crisis has prompted the State Emergency Service's Murrumbidgee region command to call for reinforcements in anticipation of more rain later this week.
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The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) has forecast between 20mm and 30mm of rain on Thursday, followed by another 10mm on Friday.
The two agencies will take until Wednesday to predict the rain’s likely impact on the height of the Murrumbidgee River at Wagga, but forecasts for between 40mm and 60mm in the Tumut catchment later this week will exacerbate the flood risk.
This week’s cold front is tipped to bring strong winds with the potential to down high voltage power lines.
Murrumbidgee region incident controller Barry Griffiths said extra SES volunteers, Ambulance NSW and NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) staff were already arriving in Wagga from as far afield as Port Macquarie and Casino.
“They’re coming from all over the state, including guys from the Illawarra, South Coast and Sydney,” Mr Griffiths said.
Mr Griffiths said the biggest issue facing first responders was fatigue, with regular rain events throughout Wagga’s wettest ever September taking their toll.
The SES has been tasked to 17 rescues in September, many of which were the result of people attempting to cross flooded causeways.
“Each flood rescue consumes significant resources because all rescues are treated as real time life and death incidents,” Mr Griffiths said.
“Rescues tie up the small proportion of the SES who are operational staff, all of whom are managed at regional level, here in the Wagga Murrumbidgee regional headquarters.”
The SES is urging people to remain vigilant despite the sunny weather at the weekend, advising anyone likely to be isolated in the event of flooding to stock up at the supermarket and suggesting graziers keep stock on high ground.
“The river level hasn't been able to drain away, crops are flooded, storage capacities and dams are full, which makes for a complex water management issue,” Mr Griffiths said.
As of Monday morning, the Murrumbidgee River at Wagga was 6.93 metres and steady. BoM Wagga duty weather officer Nigel Smedley said there was a 50 per cent chance of between 0mm and 3mm on Tuesday and 60 per cent chance of between 3mm and 6mm on Wednesday, in the lead-up to the deluge.