General News
23 October, 2022
Recovery book out again
IT WAS deja vu for Ron Trimble at Newbridge Recreation Reserve on Sunday morning. Armed with notebook, Ron was again marshalling volunteers after the Loddon River unleashed its fury at the home of the town’s football, netball and tennis clubs. Just...
IT WAS deja vu for Ron Trimble at Newbridge Recreation Reserve on Sunday morning.
Armed with notebook, Ron was again marshalling volunteers after the Loddon River unleashed its fury at the home of the town’s football, netball and tennis clubs.
Just as he did after the 2011 floods, Ron had a plan to clean up, this time helped by more than 100 people from the district and football clubs in Bendigo and Marong.
And he had questions, again,. about the water management at Cairn Curran that sent massive inflows towards Laanecoorie reserve.
“Cairn Curran was built for flood mitigation. During the drought years it was at a low level and irrigators around here had a zero allocation,” he said.
“I don’t understand, however, the rationale of keeping it at a high level when there is a La Nina.
“That needs to be explained and a lot of farmers are asking the same thing. They (Goulburn Murray Water) had plenty of warning there was a La Nina and a buffer would have taken a bit out of here and south.”
Concerns about warnings were echoed by football president Andrew Friswell who said volunteers had shifted club equipment three days before the flood hit on Friday based on warnings of moderate flooding.
The warning changed and the recreation reserve lost equipment that Mr Friswell said would have been taken from the ground.
Mr Trimle, who oversaw rebuilding of the reserve in 2011, estimates the repair bill in 2022 will be at least $1 million.
While the clubrooms were rebuilt to withstand future floods, they have been stripped in the cleanup.
“We have a shell to start with,” Mr Trimble said as water came within a metre of 2011 levels.
Tennis and netball court fencing was badly damaged, some football fencing knocked over and large branches came to rest in the playground.
“Everywhere you look, we will have to spend money.” Mr Trimble said as Sunday’s working bee started.