Source: Bureau of Meteorology

Issued at 12:39 pm EST on Sunday 26 July 2020

Flood Watch Number: 2

Minor flooding may develop in the East Gippsland catchments and into the NSW Snowy River from Monday afternoon.

A weakening cold front will reach the far southwest of Victoria by Sunday night and clip southern Victoria during Monday as a low pressure system off the NSW coast moves southwards. The low will persist off the NSW coast on Tuesday.

Catchments in East Gippsland are still relatively dry but have seen some strong river rises in response to rainfall over the past couple of weeks.

Rainfall totals of 10-20 mm are forecast for East Gippsland for Sunday with an additional 40-70 mm forecast for Monday and 20-30 mm on Tuesday. Isolated higher totals are possible, particularly in the far east of Gippsland.

With the forecast rainfall, river rises are expected and minor flooding may develop in the flood watch area from Monday afternoon.

Catchments likely to be affected include:
Bemm, Cann and Genoa Rivers

Snowy River

Tambo River

Mitchell River

The Bureau of Meteorology is continuing to monitor the situation and will issue catchment specific warnings as required.

See www.bom.gov.au/vic/warnings to view the current warnings for Victoria.

For more information on the Flood Watch Service: http://www.bom.gov.au/water/floods/floodWarningServices.shtml
Flood Safety Advice:

Note: This Flood Watch means that people living or working along rivers and streams must monitor the latest weather forecasts and warnings and be ready to move to higher ground should flooding develop.

SES advises that all community members should:

Never walk, ride or drive through floodwater, Never allow children to play in floodwater, Stay away from waterways and stormwater drains during and after heavy rain, Keep well clear of fallen power lines Be aware that in fire affected areas, rainfall run-off into waterways may contain debris such as ash, soil, trees and rocks, and heavy rainfall increases the potential for landslides and debris across roads.

Current Emergency Information is available at http://emergency.vic.gov.au For emergency assistance contact the SES on 132 500.

Current Road and Traffic Information is available at the VicRoads website:

http://traffic.vicroads.vic.gov.au/

Weather Forecast:

For the latest weather forecast see http://www.bom.gov.au/vic/forecasts/

River Height and Rainfall information are available on the Bureau of Meteorology web site at http://www.bom.gov.au/vic/flood/

Flood Warnings and Flood Watches for Victorian Catchments are also available on: Telephone Weather Service No. 1300 659217.

Rainfall and River Conditions Map