A home in Rai Valley was washed off the hillside onto the road. Photo: Justin Morrison

The heroes of Hill Street

JO KENT AND JENNY NICHOLSON

Hill Street residents John Rand and Paul Lewis live opposite each other and were two of the first on the scene in the dark at 5am on Saturday morning. John says he waded out into the knee-deep flood water with a spade desperately trying to find the submerged drain and unblock it. “It was pitch black, so we were shoving the spades and fork handles down to unblock the drains. We managed to do it temporarily but the torrent of water was so strong, it was dragging huge rocks, logs and debris down so we didn’t stand a chance.” He says if it wasn’t for two lads, Tane Petrie and Josh Hamilton, who brought their diggers along to help clear the mud, gravel and silt, things could have been so much worse. “One neighbour, Glennis, rang them to help, and they turned up 20 minutes later and stayed the entire time. They really are the heroes as they did it all off their own back just to help out the community.” Tane’s brother Rai was out watching and says they boys built banks by houses to prevent the water that was raging down the road going into houses. “It is good to help the community and give someone a hand,” Tane says. Paul Lewis attempted to rescue a wheelie bin which had got stuck in the creek which runs alongside his house, but soon realised it was half full of water, and knew it could pull him down the stream with it so he let it go. “Things were pretty crazy in the early hours, but once the flood water level had reached its peak, it was just a case of waiting for it to go down and assess the damage and help with the clean up,” Paul says. Neighbour Maria Hart, who built the entire subdivision by Hart Road, says the flood water drained away in exactly the way it was designed to. “We spent months and months going backwards and forwards with council when getting sign off for the subdivision to make sure if a flood happened, water would drain straight down the footpath and onwards to Pinecrest Drive. It’s doing exactly what it’s meant to.” She says that years ago, council would come along once a year to clear out the culverts to make sure they were fully functioning, however, she says that doesn’t seem to happen much any more. “My sister called me from Wakefield at 3am to get me to go outside and check, but everything was fine then. But at 5am I could hear the rumbling of rocks and roar of water on the street outside and came out to all the carnage.” Further along the opposite end of Hill Street, families were evacuated overnight after Resevoir Creek burst its banks and flooded Selbourne Avenue, Polglase Road, Hill Street, Sutton Street and Gilbert Street. Tim Mutch was sound asleep when the police knocked on the door to tell the family to evacuate at 4.30 am. There was water and silt and mud everywhere outside, and across the road water was pouring through a crack in the fence. They were able to walk out, with the water mid-calf and flowing quickly out on the street. “It was a bit unreal,” Tim says. “The fire brigade and police were there. It was quite intense.” A friend heard their area was evacuating and offered them a bed for the night. Tim then returned to the home with Andrew Riordan, laying carpet in front of the house and the Hair Salon on the property. “I think the carpet saved it. No water got inside.” Tim says he felt the love from people. Neighbours were digging stones away from the house and salon. “So many in the community have come together,’ Tim says. “We have had a lot of help. Tim knows it will be a big clean up. He says they are taking care as it is black water, contaminated with sewage. Across the road, strangers had joined in with wheelbarrows and spades, helping move the soil. Antoinette Crowther saw a post on social media, and then saw a helicopter. She popped around the corner to check on people, saw the mess and went home to collect her shovel and wheelbarrow. Lochie Fraser and eight-yearold Daniel Manajah were helping out. Daniel says his hand got tired moving the dirt.

Antoinette Crowther, saw on social media and helped. Photo: Jenny Nicholson.