Rain fails to dampen spirits
SWOLLEN creeks, sodden farms and flash flooding wreaked havoc on the North and East Coast of Tasmania on Friday, with more wet weather on the way this weekend.
Glenn Traver from Craigie Knowe Vineyard in Cranbrook said they had 15mm in 15 minutes on Friday morning.
“We are swimming; we’ve had 50mm in 24 hours,” Mr Traver said. “The Swan River is in flood and one of the entrances is blocked off.”
But he said they were no strangers to these conditions.
“There’s been minor flooding, pretty small compared to what we normally get, we can get up 150mm. In March we had 400mm come through our cellar door.
“We’re not really worried about the vines at this stage, they’re very young, it’s just giving the ground a bit of a soaking and when the sun’s back out it should be OK.”
Gray, on the East Coast, recorded 127mm in the 24 hours to 9am Friday, with nearby St Patricks Head recording 53mm.
A flood watch is current for the north and northeast, east coastal, southeast and Huon catchments, with minor flooding developing in some areas overnight Friday into Saturday.
The Bureau of Meteorology said a low pressure system over Victoria is slowly moving south and it is expected to move to the east of Tasmania on Saturday, bringing with it some potentially heavy falls that may lead to flash flooding.
East Coast Primary Producers Association president Anna Cotton has a sheep farm and vineyard in Swansea and said the rain had come at the right time.
“The past three months have been quite windy and dried things out quite considerably,” she said.
“We were teetering on the verge of drought conditions prior to this weather event. It has really turned this around and set us up for spring.”
Cheryl McCartie and her husband Theo van Brecht own a dairy farm at Ringarooma and are also feeling the impact of the wet weather.
She said they had been dealing with pugging damage caused by the cows to the pasture in the boggy conditions.
“It can impact the overall production and if there is damage now or in winter you can’t utilise as much pasture as you would like in the coming seasons,” Ms McCartie said.
She said they usually reach a break-even point in late September where they are able to feed their cows just on grass they have grown rather than needing supplements such as hay, but that had been delayed a bit due to cooler conditions.