SA SES deployment to Victoria

[bajdas]

Media release from www.ses.sa.gov.au

SA SES crews to assist Victorian clean up
7 March 2010

The South Australian State Emergency Service is providing urgent support to their Victorian
colleagues as they continue to clean up in the wake of the severe weather that has caused
widespread hail damage.

Thirty-four SES volunteers and two staff will head to Victoria for a three-day deployment.

Three teams specialising in working at heights and seven crews experienced in storm damage work will head across the border later today.

Deputy Chief Officer of the SES Matt Maywald says that South Australia is happy to lend a hand to their Victorian counterparts during their time of need.

"Victorian crews have been busy working throughout the night, and with further severe weather expected to continue today, providing relief for their volunteers is critical.

"Within a couple of hours of putting the call out to our South Australian personnel, we were able to pull together thirty-four volunteers and two staff members from across the State, including Port Lincoln, Millicent, Yankalilla, Victor Harbor and the Adelaide metropolitan area.

"This stands as a great testament to the willingness and selfless spirit of our SES volunteers to give up their long weekend to support our neighbours, and to the high esteem to which the skills and expertise of SA SES is held across the nation," said Mr Maywald.

South Australian crews will be working in the Melbourne metropolitan area which was the hardest hit in yesterday's downpour, mainly repairing hail damage sustained to roof tops.

Two staff members will take up roles in the Incident Control Centre in Mulgrave as the Interstate Liaison Officer / Task Force Leader and Resources and Logistics Officer within the Victorian Incident Management Team. Crews will start their shift early Monday morning.

Mr Maywald says the Victorian SES has already responded to more than 5,000 jobs over the past 24 hours and the workload is not expected to ease up until Tuesday at the earliest.

"We are anticipating there will be another influx of jobs as a second storm front passes through Victoria later today, and more jobs are expected to come in as people return home from their long weekend trips and find damage," said Mr Maywald.

SES crews from South Australia have been deployed to other major incidents across Australia. Last year, the SES deployed a number of personnel to support the Victorian firefighting efforts in the wake of the Black Saturday bushfires, and in 2007 the SA SES sent 140 staff and volunteers to assist with storms that ravaged NSW.

Media Opportunity: SES crews will be departing Adelaide Airport at 7pm TONIGHT.

[bajdas]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/huge-hailstorm-strikes-melbourne/story-e6frf7jo-1225837662827

Storms hit Melbourne
March 07, 2010  7:55PM

Thunderstorms and flash flooding have hit the northern suburbs of Melbourne.

South Morang and Sunbury are already experiencing the brunt of the bad weather, but the Bureau of Meteorology says it will not be as serve as yesterday's storm.

"We're not expecting it to be as bad as yesterday," forecaster Scott Williams said.

They are forecast to affect Craigieburn, Sunbury and Whittlesea by 6:05 pm and Caulfield, Footscray, Greensborough, Melbourne City, Melton, Preston, St Albans and Werribee by 6:35 pm.

Very heavy rainfall and flash flooding are likely. Damaging winds and large hailstones are also possible.

The State Emergency Service advises that people should:

* Keep clear of fallen power lines.
* secure any loose objects in the vicinity of your home.
* keep away from creeks and drains.
* do not drive vehicles through flooded areas.
* stay indoors if possible.
* Avoid using the phone during the storm.
* if you are outside, avoid sheltering under trees
* listen to the radio for storm updates
* switch off your computer and electrical appliances

Weather bureau manager weather services Victoria Ted Williams said a storm front was moving south across the state extending from Shepparton to Ballarat.

Shepparton was hit hard, while hail, fallen trees and large hail have been reported in the NSW town of Deniliquin.

Mr Williams said most of the intense activity had been recorded in Victoria's north so far and thunderstorms were likely to hit Melbourne's northern suburbs between 7-8pm before moving across the city.

They will be less intense than initially expected.

"There is still a risk we will get some severe phenomenon as it gets to Melbourne,'' Mr Williams said.

"But it certainly is not looking as active as it was.''

A severe thunderstorm warning was also issued for damaging wind, flash flooding and large hailstones in other parts of Victoria.

It applies for people in the Northern Country, Northeast and parts of the North Central and Alpine Forecast Districts.

Premier John Brumby today urged Victorians to batten down the hatches

Mr Brumby warned people to stay inside during the possibly severe storms, and he said people at public events must be prepared to act if weather struck this afternoon.

"It really is batten down the hatches (with forecast) thunderstorms possibly as intense as yesterday," Mr Brumby said."We got through yesterday without any loss of life or serious injury, we would want to see if we could keep to this today and tomorrow."

Mr Brumby said there were weak trees in many bushfire ravaged parts of Victoria and around the state that were vulnerable to strong winds.

"We should take great care as we move through this afternoon, tonight and into tomorrow and make sure we put this focus on protecting life and protecting public safety."

He said the roof of the arts centre had been badly damaged by yesterday's storms and could cost up to millions of dollars to repair.

He was unable to put an estimated dollar figure on the expected repair bill, and said more damage is expected to be reported in the coming days when people return home from Labour Day holidays.

Crews from the NSW State Emergency Service have been drafted in to help their Victorian counterparts clean up the damage caused by the mini-cyclone storm that lashed Melbourne yesterday.

The storm cell unleashed itself on the city at 2.40pm, dumping 26mm of rain in less than an hour.

Last night the rain continued up to the Murray River, out to east Gippsland and across the west of the state.

The SES received about 3800 calls for help during yesterday's violent storms, with 500 volunteers working on the clean up.

Spokeswoman Natasha Duckett said crews would spend today cleaning up.

``We'll be sandbagging and removing objects,'' she said.

Melbourne Water spokesman Andrew McGinnes said yesterday's rain had reached water catchments but was not expected to see Melbourne's water storage levels rise yet.

The O'Shannassy reservoir received 32.6mm, Upper Yarra 33.6mm and Thomson and Maroondah each about 20mm.

More rain and run-off would was expected to see catchment levels rise further, Mr McGinnes said.

Moomba resumed today, but the NGV has been forced to close as staff mop up.

Nineteen millimetres of rain bucketed down on the city in less than 18 minutes yesterday afternoon.

Hail pummelled city streets and brought traffic to a standstill, with some residents reporting hail stones as big as 5cm.

Southern Cross train station had to be evacuated as heavy rain tore a hole in its roof and a deluge splashed down on the train platforms.

Several people suffered serious injuries during the storms, while thousands of others suffered bruising and welts as they were showered with golf-ball sized hail.

At least one Melbournian suffered serious injuries after falling from a roof while trying to protect their house, while others are being treated in city hospitals for head injuries after slipping on an ice-covered footpath fleeing the rain.

Paramedics treated several people after falls as they tried to escape hail, but were not called to treat anyone suffering head injuries directly from hail strikes.

Ambulance officers were also called to the scenes of several people trapped in cars, however none of the drivers were seriously injured and were rescued by fire fighters.

St Johns Ambulance officers were kept busy treating and calming Moomba goers after receiving warning of the storm minutes before being pelted with ice, with reports one woman was treated for hypothermia following the soaked event.

- with Grant McArthur, Amelia Harris

[bajdas]

10:20:26 09-03-10 PLEASE PHONE UM ON <mobile #> B4 11AM IF AVAILABLE TO GO TO VIC FOR 2ND DEPLOYMENT. LEAVE TONIGHT BACK FRIDAY POSS THURSDAY NIGHT.

[Alex]

Good to see South Aussies heading over to lend our mates a hand. Good luck to all heading over.

[bajdas]

Media Release
www.ses.sa.gov.au

Second round of SA volunteers helping Victoria
Wednesday, 10 March 2010

The South Australian State Emergency Service (SASES) has deployed another 17 volunteers to Victoria to continue helping local SES crews get through the backlog of jobs in the wake of widespread extreme weather throughout that state.

Since 4pm Friday (5 March), there have been in excess of 7,000 requests for SES assistance across Victoria. In addition to support from the SASES, SES crews from around the country are rallying to support Victoria.

On Sunday 7 March, the SASES sent 34 volunteers and two staff members to Victoria. These personnel have worked solidly all day Monday and Tuesday assisting their Victorian counterparts on clearing outstanding jobs in the worst affected areas. The first deployment will continue to work throughout today along with the second deployment. 17 volunteers from the first deployment will return to Adelaide this evening.

The second deployment is expected to work for the rest of the week. Personnel from the first deployment will start returning on Thursday night, with all remaining SASES personnel expected to return on Friday night.

SASES Deputy Chief Officer Matt Maywald says that the South Australian members are doing a tremendous job and have provided some much deserved respite for Victorian SES crews.

"Our personnel have been working tirelessly, in many of the hardest hit areas, mainly repairing roof tops and structures that have been severely impacted by storm damage," said Mr Maywald.

"It comes as no surprise to me that we have had volunteers from right across the state put their hand up to provide assistance.

"The SES often plays a key role in supporting communities and other emergency service organisations and there is a firm agreement in place between the SES in all states and territories.

"We assist each other in times of need. The SES is one big family and we work together. If South Australia was faced with such a disaster, I know our interstate colleagues would be right here with us, helping us to protect and defend what is important to us."

The SASES is an emergency and rescue service made up almost entirely of volunteers. There are 66 SES Units throughout the State and more than 1,600 volunteers who are dedicated to helping their communities during emergencies. Crews from South Australia have been deployed to other major incidents in Australia. Last year SA personnel supported the VICSES and the Victorian fire agencies during the Black Saturday bushfires and in 2007 crews were sent to New South Wales during a major storm event. Volunteers involved in this latest deployment have come from Millicent, Mount Gambier, Port Lincoln, Quorn, Victor Harbor, Yankalilla and the Adelaide metropolitan area.

Media opportunity: The 17 returning SES volunteers will be arriving at Adelaide airport tonight at 9:40pm