About 18 months on from the 2022 flood that tore through the Macedon Ranges, repairs and upgrades to three sporting facilities have officially finished.
A Bureau of Meteorology submission to the flood inquiry outlined that from October 12 to 14, 2022, the heaviest rainfalls were recorded in central parts of the state.
Widespread daily rainfall totaled between 20 and 60 millimetres and isolated totals exceeded 100 millimetres.
For Malmsbury Cricket Ground, Woodend Bowling Club and Darraweit Guim Tennis Club, this event devastated local facilities.
In Malmsbury, water covered the entire cricket ground, with damage sustained to fencing, training nets, changerooms and the clubrooms.
Partial works were completed in December, 2022, but termite damage delayed repair to the clubrooms, which Macedon Ranges council said in turn, triggered several other activities. The clubrooms were completed and re-opened in November 2023.
For the Woodend Bowling Club, both the grass and synthetic greens were inundated in the flood, and the synthetic green needed replacing.
Works were completed on the facilities by mid-September,2023, just in time for the new pennant season.
Darraweit Guim was the town hit hardest by the floods, with several homes, the local primary school and the tennis club inundated, impacting the courts, clubrooms, fences and lighting.
Repairs to the fences and lighting were completed in March ,2023, and the clubrooms were finished in April, 2023.
Council said a contractor has been engaged to complete the surface recoating to the tennis courts, and with the work underway it said the courts are expected to be available for use by mid-May.
Mayor Annette Death said councillors appreciated the opportunity to meet with the respective clubs, discuss how they were faring and see the changes themselves.
“The timing of the October 2022 flood event couldn’t have been worse for these three clubs in particular, given they were all leading into new summer seasons,” she said.
“On behalf of council, I’d like to extend a huge thank you to the impacted clubs and all of their members for their patience.
“Also to our council officers who worked diligently through what can at times be a complex insurance process to deliver the necessary repairs and upgrades.”
