General News
13 August, 2026
Near miss on flood front as wet set in
WHILE there wasn’t as much stress on the local water system as there was along the Loddon River, residents along the Avoca River were put on alert earlier this week.
WHILE there wasn’t as much stress on the local water system as there was along the Loddon River, residents along the Avoca River were put on alert earlier this week.
Rain over the weekend sent water levels rising, but not enough for residents to panic.
St Arnaud resident Tania Smith said she had to turn around on her way to work in Wedderburn on Monday as water was covering the road.
“[It was across] the Logan-Wedderburn Road,” she said.
“We had to turn around, but it was rising quickly and we didn’t want to get stuck.
“We couldn’t get through on the old Wedderburn Road either.”
Witnesses said there was a “fair bit of water” on the St Arnaud-Charlton Road as well.
Drivers dodged water across the road between Bendigo and St Arnaud, slowing traffic down.
And while the water had disappeared by Monday night and Tuesday morning, the damage that was left behind by water remained.
An advice warning was put on the Avoca River downstream from Charlton Town to Kerang on Monday.
The State Emergency Service (SES) said moderate to heavy rainfall since Sunday had caused widespread river level rises and minor flooding across the Avoca River catchments.
“Catchments are moderately wet following recent rainfall and rivers may respond quickly to any further rainfall,” they said.
Watch and prepare for Loddon
NEIGHBOURING communities on the Loddon River were put on quite high alert as river levels rose at the same time.
Residents between Laanecoorie and the Loddon Weir were told to watch, act and prepare as the reservoir spilled over on Monday.
As of 11pm on Monday night, the Loddon River at Laanecoorie Reservior was sitting at 1.25m and rising.
The SES warned it could reach 3m by yesterday morning.
Emergency services reminded residents not to drive through floodwater.
Read More: Local