mrmoshe Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Severe weather warning for NSW coast A SEVERE weather warning has been issued for much of the NSW north coast, as the town of Lismore remains on flood alert. Huge swells are expected to force the closure of many NSW beaches this weekend as a low pressure system moves down from Queensland. The Bureau of Meteorology is warning residents in the northern rivers and mid-north coast of heavy rain, damaging winds and surf, and flash flooding. The Wilson River is expected to peak between 6pm and 9pm (AEDT) tonight, with minor to moderate flooding predicted for Lismore. An average of 200mm of rain has fallen in the catchment area in the past 24 hours. Lismore received 100mm, Byron Bay 149mm, Ballina 139mm, and Mullumbimby 137mm, and a whopping 177mm fell at Upper Main Arm. A State Emergency Service (SES) spokesman said about 86 requests for assistance had been received. He said about 30 people had been evacuated from a low-lying caravan park in Lismore, and another two parks in the area were on evacuation alert. He said the SES was monitoring a family at nearby Kyogle, where 87mm of rain fell in 24 hours, after their house was damaged in a mudslide. The family of four had moved into a back shed after the incident, but they couldn't be evacuated because flood waters had closed a local road and conditions were too dangerous for a helicopter to fly, he said. "We have minor flooding in Lismore with the river rising," the spokesman said. "There are lots of rural road closures." People were rescued from flooded vehicles in three separate incidents at Mullumbimby, and one car was swept away in flood waters. A Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA) spokesman said five-metre swells were expected to close most NSW beaches through the weekend. He said wild conditions had already forced the cancellation of a surf carnival in Sydney. "We're expecting most beaches in NSW will be closed as swells pick up over the weekend," he said. The system is expected to continue moving south overnight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Thanks for the alert Pete. Ross and myself were waiting to see if the large low pressure system would head north or come our way all week The bureau predicted it may be travelling in a southerly direction and it is This is the reason we decided to cancel the Social. Regards Swordfisherman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrmoshe Posted January 4, 2008 Author Share Posted January 4, 2008 Definitely headed south now. http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/nmoc/latest_...30&number=4 Could get rather nasty. Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jewhunter Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 It's heading south but we are still copping it big time. 125mm in 24 hrs & it is bucketing down still now. The river has risen over 2 mtrs. My front yard is ankle deep. It's going to be a bit of a sleepless night for me. I'm in the process of getting what I can in the shed into the boat. Bloody hell I hope it stops soon! Cheers, Grant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsswordfisherman Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 It's heading south but we are still copping it big time. 125mm in 24 hrs & it is bucketing down still now. The river has risen over 2 mtrs. My front yard is ankle deep. It's going to be a bit of a sleepless night for me. I'm in the process of getting what I can in the shed into the boat. Bloody hell I hope it stops soon! Cheers, Grant. Stay safe Grant - glad you have the boat ready !! Donna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris 55 Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Damn that I had the tinnie all ready to run out to Browns Lets see 3.85 mt v nose punt with 15Hp if I leave early Sat I should be there and back Sun evening I could double to speed if I put the bimini top up Seriously be safe no trip is worth the risk of bad weather and unsafe conditions Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Sorry to hear your property is being threatened, Grant - hope the rain & river level stops in time! We had biiig winds all yesterday, along with the big seas over the last week. Huge waves hitting the breakwall & going on to Nine Mile Beach .... surfers haven tho! Right now, the rain has started & the cloud is full on, so looks like it will be staying for a while. Still big winds & big seas off Forster. I hope all Raiders keep safe & dry! Cheers Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsswordfisherman Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 MODERATE TO MAJOR FLOOD WARNING FOR THE TWEED RIVER Issued at 7:00am on Saturday the 5th of January 2008 Flood Warning Number : 3 At 7am the Tweed River at Murwillumbah was peaking at 4.9 metres with major flooding. Moderate to major flooding is expected downstream at Chinderah due to the combined effect of tides and flood flows from Murwillumbah. Not looking good for Grant up there - hope you guys are all ok Donna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutboy Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Hi all, I went deep sea fishing with a bunch of workmates yesterday out through sydney heads and the swell was unbelievable. I mean it took all your concentration just to bait up and remain upright at the same time. I was with some pretty tough blokes who said that they never get sick, yet just 20 minutes into our first drift we had 4 tough guys heaving over the side and a lovely shade of grey on their faces. Even the deckie had a go! The skipper, my wife ,myself and 1 other female collegue where the only ones to keep it down and continue fishing . In the end we came back early as over half the boat were moaning and groaning and really feeling miserable but we managed to bag some 14 nice mowies 2 decent snapper and a ling. I dont know exactly how big the swell was yesterday but the skipper reckons it was approaching 3.5m at times and building. The only other boats outside that I saw were a couple of very brave yacths. Conditions for today are predicted to be much worse. cheers troutboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewgaffer Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Quote Jewhunter ....It's heading south but we are still copping it big time. 125mm in 24 hrs & it is bucketing down still now. The river has risen over 2 mtrs. My front yard is ankle deep. It's going to be a bit of a sleepless night for me. I'm in the process of getting what I can in the shed into the boat. Bloody hell I hope it stops soon! Cheers, Grant. ......................................................................................................................................................... Hi Grant. Hope the rain eases off and keeps you all high and dry at home up there on the Tweed mate ! Had a call from Jimmy Bowers who's spending a few days with a newly married Jay over at Hastings Point to say that the river was very muddy and almost unfishable, so I won't be rolling up there for a fish this weekend, that's for sure. I will be spending another 10 days or so back in Ballina with Jimmy from the 7th and hope to get into the black marlin cobes and mahis off the FAD. There has been some real good blue water around the green areas in close around Ballina and Lennox lately in spite of all the mud in the river. I've been up in Qld and Ballina for around three weeks now and am currently staying with relatives on the Qld side of the Gold Coast. Took a drive down to the Spit at Surfers yesterday and there were at least 50 diehards spinning for tailor in wet weather gear, along the rocks near the lighthouse. Saw a couple of tailor caught on squid down deep none on lures for the spoon enthusiasts though, but the ones down deep were a good sign for a jew at night in the rain either off the end of the sand spit which goes into shark country way out in the swell behind the breakers or in the drop off near the red marker towards the shore near the lighthouse. In saying that and fishing iin pouring rain, I often think of those two monster 60 odd pound jew you dragged out of the mouth of Narrabeen in the pouring rain back in '91 after all the rain that that fell during that same week !!! Never seen such bad weather like this go on for so long in S/W Qld as it has at this time of the year. Everyday has been the same, overcast and grey/black skies, wind and rain. It seems everybody's mid north and far north coast holidays have been affected one way or another over the past few weeks. There is another low following the current low down the coast so hopefully it will dissipate from this area within a few days, but I think the weather down towards Sydney will be pretty lousy when the new low reaches those parts on top of the present conditions. Had a chat with Roberta last night and Forster is going thru much the same of late with very big seas starting to come in there with this freaky weather system as well. Taree is usually a bad spot to get thru when the rains come. I sincerely hope everything's ok down your way in regard to the river level Grant? Regards for now Byron jewgaffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris 55 Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Grant hope the river has peaked and is on the way down for you I guess it's the down side of living so close to the river at lest you can be more prepared when it rises again To anyone else caught up in the floods keep safe Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jewhunter Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Thanks for the concern all. We were lucky I guess & didn't have to leave the house. It happened so fast. I was trying to stay awake but fell asleep around 12.45 a.m. When a neighbour woke me at 3.30 am we were in trouble. I didn't even have time to move the cars to high ground. My 4x4 should be ok. Just a bit wet & smelly but the little golf had water up to the steering wheel & is a write off I reckon. We moved some important stuff higher during the night but alot of stuff in the shed is ruined. My rod rack floated & tipped over. Grrrr. Rods & reels full of river silt. We have alot of cleaning up to do. The place is a mess. It was a big one. Sth Murwillumbah was evacuated this morning & the entire town of Kyogle was evacuated during the night. Casino could be in trouble when the Richmond river peaks this afternoon. 350mm in 3 hrs last night after 8 days of solid rain is what did it. Yep, all part of living on a river I guess. We knew it would happen one day. I just didn't expect it to be a big one 1st up! At least the house stayed dry. I'll do a bit more cleaning up & post up some pics of the flood later. Thanks again to all for caring so much. Cheers, Grant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat-as-trophy Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Thank god you are all safe Grant. A bit of cleaning up is better than looking for or losing a loved one. Keep safe mate. Cheers Mrs Flightmanager Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Hi Grant Sorry to hear of the car write off & silt covered stuff in the shed ..... at least the house was left high & dry & you are all safe. I know I would hate to have to sieve thru the gunk of a flooded house .... hoping to salvage stuff, but knowing it was 'gorn'. You guys take care & give each other a special hug tonight! Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrmoshe Posted January 5, 2008 Author Share Posted January 5, 2008 Glad you are all safe Grant and the house was fine..There sure was a lot of water down the Tweed as I saw on TV tonight. Also being declared a Natural Disaster area will help the hip pocket to replace all that is lost hopefully. Good luck with the heartbreaking cleanup..It must be horrible to see everything you own covered in silt and gunk. In a few months, things will be back to normal and you can enjoy God's country again. Take care mate. Cheers, Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jewhunter Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 I'm a little speechless atm. I'll let the photos tell the story. It's a pain in the ass but I still think that we were lucky. I hope that everyone affected by this is ok. Cheers, Grant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caine Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 so sorry mate! i hope everything returns to normal quickly, and that insurance cover all the damage. Caine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewgaffer Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 I'm really sorry about this happening to you and your family Grant! I hope everything gets back to normal for you all soon and that you make a strong recovery in the near future. Regards jewgaffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flightmanager Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Look on the bright side mate , no need to top dress the lawn this year ( or next probably!). Hope the cleanup is a quick one for you !! Ross and Cath Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roosterman Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 hi grant, glad to see that your all safe, its good to see you have your spirits up in what would be heartbreaking to see all your gear like that... possessions are replaceable but lives not.. our prayers for all up there amongst this mayhem and may all be safe and damage minimal..... cheers... steve.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inhlanzi Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Hey Grant Gees mate that is a shocker! Never realised it was so bad up there. The pics are amazing. Don't know what we can do to help from down here but if you need help give a yell. Hang in there. Cheers inhlanzi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davemmm Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Material damage can be fixed. Glad to hear everyone is safe. I had a mate who went through it recently at Tuggerah his biggest advice is watch out for the sharks and he doesnt mean those that swim. Not all tradesmen are decent honest blokes like me. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrmoshe Posted January 5, 2008 Author Share Posted January 5, 2008 Geez Grant..Looks like more pain to come up your way. Better move everything to high ground again. This is in this morning's Australian. More rain to fall in natural disaster zones HEAVY rain is expected to continue falling in flooded areas of northern NSW, with some parts already declared natural disaster zones. Showers will hit towns in the Northern Rivers area for the next few days and may cause localised flooding, but the brunt of the weather front is starting to weaken as it moves south. NSW Emergency Services Minister Nathan Rees declared the Tweed and Kyogle local government areas natural disaster zones on a visit to the region yesterday, and he is considering natural disaster declarations for the Richmond valley and Lismore if more rain falls in those areas. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued flood warnings for the Tweed, Richmond, Wilsons, Bellinger, Orara, Bogan, Warrego and Paroo rivers. Kyogle was hit the hardest when the Richmond River peaked at a major flood level of 18.1m - the second highest ever recorded for the area. Widespread flooding forced the evacuation of hundreds of people to higher ground on Friday night, but river levels are now falling. A peak of 6.8m this afternoon will cause major flooding at Coraki and this evening at Bungawalbyn Junction. Further south, heavy rains caused minor flooding at Glenreagh yesterday, with similar conditions expected to hit Grafton by this afternoon. West of Coffs Harbour, the Bellinger River rose to minor flood levels of 4.3m at Thora, with further rainfall threatening to cause more damage. The wet weather has cut CountryLink train services between Brisbane and Sydney, requiring northbound passengers to board buses at Grafton and southbound passengers taking buses to the mid-north coast. The State Emergency Service is keeping watch on floodwaters and will be ready if flash flooding occurs. The storms will move south but bring little rain to the Central Coast and Sydney this week. Surf conditions peaked yesterday with waves up to 4m from the north coast to Sydney. The huge swell will begin to ease today but rough beach conditions will remain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vipernut Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 Sorry for your loses Grant,atleast it was only material items that were damaged. Could have been much worse and atleast you and your family are OK. Hopefully the predicted weather dosnt makes things worse. Stephen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishguts Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 just crazy stuff, very unsocial weather....all the best to you from now on! ..fishguts!.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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