Wagga downpour fills Lake Albert to brim, increase calls to SES

The start of February delivered a heavy downpour that resulted in the city's streets submerged in water and residents struggling to keep dry.

A severe weather warning was issued by the Bureau of Meteorology on the afternoon of February 5, with rain first recorded in the area about 3.50pm.

That night, NSW State Emergency Service (SES) crews rescued a family from flood waters after flood waters begun flowing through their home in Turvey Park.

This was just the start of the downpour for the city and the flash flooding extended across the Riverina.

By 5.30pm, 31.2 millimetres had been recorded in Wagga, with roughly 25 millimetres falling in just half an hour.

The following day, February 6, even more rainfall fell across the city, with Wagga recording 63.4 millimetres of rain overnight, while there were falls of up to 69.4 millimetres recorded at nearby Kapooka.

With the downpour came an influx of calls to the SES, with volunteers called out to 39 requests for assistance across Wagga.

Across the Riverina, there were 47 callouts, mostly to deal with overland flooding, the flooding of gutters and fallen trees.

The storm season in NSW runs annually from October through to March.

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While the downpour proved to be chaotic, there were some positives to come out of the weather event. By the following Wednesday, February 8, the sun was beaming again and the rain the weekend prior meant water levels at Lake Albert made for quite the delight, with it having reached its highest water level in years.

The following Sunday, boats had already begun to make use of the lake's vastly-improved condition.

Riverina Marine Centre owner Petroulla McDonell was one of the first to get out on the water and said she was happy to see the lake looking healthy.

While residents made good use of the sun and the water, they were also being urged to cover themselves in mosquito repellent before heading out.

Ross River fever numbers in Murrumbidgee Local Health District doubled during February.

There had been 18 cases of the virus reported across the district on January 22, but by the second week of February that number had skyrocketed to 41 cases.

Residents were encouraged to cover up as much as possible while outdoors, use repellent and take special care during peak mosquito biting hours, especially around dawn and dusk and when near bodies of water.

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