Bunyip bursts banks

By Danny Buttler
CARS, houses and shops were awash in Bunyip over the weekend.
Torrential localised rain saw the main street inundated, while the Bunyip River burst its banks, flooding properties across the district.
Head chef at the Butcher Shop Hotel, Kate Neilson, said the pub’s drainage system was unable to cope when the heavens opened.
“We got a bit wet on Friday night at about nine when the water came into the bar,” she said.
“Out the back of the kitchen it was under a foot of water, while the bar was nearly a foot deep. We had some blokes rolling up their pants and still playing pool, but we had to shut the doors after a while.”
Staff and customers pitched in to dry the place, allowing the pub to re-open the next morning.
Other businesses were similarly affected, with the Railway Hotel, takeaway and supermarket all experiencing some flooding. Water also entered a number of houses in the town.
Jo Kelly, who took possession of the Bunyip Takeaway on Monday morning, said the main street was a river on Friday night. “I just bought the shop off Anna and Arthur today, so I’m not sure what happened over the weekend,” she said. “I heard cars were flooded when the water came down the street on Friday night.”
Jeremy Payne’s property, adjacent to the Princes Highway, became a temporary lake when the Bunyip River burst its banks at around 2pm on Saturday.
Trucks and excavators were moved in the nick of time, before water washed across low-lying land.
“I was watching it, so I sort of took off and got the trucks and excavators out,” Mr Payne said. Before a trench was dug to drain the water away, Mr Payne took the opportunity to take his boat for a quick spin around the paddock to assess any damage.