By Rowan Forster
Traders on Garfield’s main shopping strip are fortifying their businesses with sandbags in an attempt to battle flash flooding.
Several stores, including Australia Post, Garfield Hair Solutions and the local bakery, were forced to temporarily close as downpour gushed beneath their doors.
Many were quick to point the finger at drainage issues in the township, while others believed the gradient of the railway line was the cause.
Emma, from the Garfield hair salon, said her business had been flooded 10 times in nine years.
“We’re the lowest point and we’re straight across the hill so it hits us first,” she said.
“It comes through the rail tunnel and shoots out from under the train line.
“I don’t see the council out there cleaning the drains very often.”
The worst of the flooding took place in 2011, when the rainwater was reportedly at hip height in the main street.
Shoppers said the town needed some flood prevention measures installed to prevent damage to buildings and stores.
“With the landscape and the drains being so clogged, it floods here so quickly and easily,” Heather Tonks said.
“When the shops have to close, it costs them money.
“Thankfully it hasn’t been as bad today as some of the events in recent years.”
The Bureau of Meterology has advised that the Bunyip River is at risk of further flooding.
Across the state, SES volunteers have been inundated with rescue missions, following an intensive downpour.
