(a) Bureau of Meteorology warnings

A range of government agencies and local governments monitor conditions and provide flood warnings.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) is primarily responsible for monitoring situations likely to lead to floods and for predicting floods throughout Victoria (although local councils are responsible for predictions and warning about flash floods). The BOM has published a flood watch brochure which is available on its web site at www.bom.gov.au.

The Victorian Flood Warning Centre at the BOM gives daily flood warnings, river data and daily rainfall information for all regions of Victoria. This information is available online at www.bom.gov.au. The Department of Sustainability and Environment assists in stream height and flow data collection.

The BOM also provides a “Flood Watch” service. The service notifies local communities of potential floods arising from developing weather systems. Flood Watches are issued for specific regions, and will provide the following information:

Flood Watches are normally issued 24 to 36 hours in advance of potential flooding, and are upgraded to Flood Warnings if such an event is likely to occur. Flood Watches therefore indicate only a possibility of flooding, and are not a warning of an imminent flood.

More information is available about this service from:

Catchment management authorities (CMAs) also support the flood warning system, primarily through monitoring significant floods within a region. All known regional flood information for Victoria is provided to CMAs. Information about CMAs and their various roles is available at the Department of Sustainability and Environment web site - www.dse.vic.gov.au

During floods, Melbourne Water and other water authorities must assist in providing information and support relating to their own systems, particularly dams and weirs. Additionally, rural water authorities operate water supply storages and infrastructure, and monitor dam safety and water flows. They are required to inform the local community about proposed releases of water likely to cause inconveniences. Information on the role of these authorities is available at the Department of Primary Industries website - www.dpi.vic.gov.au.

At the local level, municipal councils are responsible for rainfall stations, flash flood warnings and flood management plans.

Flood warning services have been developed for specific streams, cities and towns across Victoria to varying standards. In recent years a more comprehensive system upgrade has occurred. This includes data collection networks, flood prediction, local level flood plans, flood interpretation, community alerts, dissemination of flood information and community education.

Local councils should be contacted for information on the flood warning and management systems they have put in place.

Floods are categorized as either minor, moderate or major, and are defined as follows:

More information on flood classifications, including for specific locations, is available on the Bureau of Meteorology website at www.bom.gov.au for areas south of the Divide, and at www.bom.gov.au for areas north of the Divide.

(a) Non-flash floods

There are different warning systems in place depending on whether the flood is a non-flash flood (generally river and lake floods) and flash floods (generally resulting from short and severe thunderstorms).

The Bureau of Meteorology provides flood warnings to state agencies (including the State Emergency Service), some private entities and to the media. This information is also available on the Bureau’s website at www.bom.gov.au.

The Victoria State Emergency Service (VICSES) then passes on these warnings to local governments and regional authorities. In severe situations, the Bureau of Meteorology will bypass VICSES and directly contact councils or regional authorities.

Local governments, VICSES and the police are the main entities responsible for alerting communities. These procedures are available in each municipality’s Municipal Emergency Management Plan, and are required by the Emergency Management Act 1986 (Vic).

Slightly different warning procedures are in place in the event of flash floods due to the inherently short notice communities and response services have.

In order to prepare for flash floods, the Bureau of Meteorology provides predictions of severe weather conditions that could result in flash floods. These warnings are available on the bureau’s website at www.bom.gov.au.

Due to the rapid responses needed for these types of floods, local governments are primarily responsible for warnings and predictions of dangerous stream levels. The Bureau of Meteorology can also assist local governments with special advice where needed, including data collection and stream flood simulation models, monitoring and the development of flash flood plans.