2022
Incorporating
Wednesday, January 10, 2024
Phone: (03) 5775 2115
$2.00 (inc.GST)
www.mansfieldcourier.com.au
Page 3
UNUSUAL CRIME IN MANSFIELD BY A NOSE THE 169th Mansfield Cup, sponsored by Mansfield Power Ag, was a thrilling day for spectators and racers alike with the wet conditions not dampening an excellent event at the Mansfield Racecourse last Sunday. Full coverage on pages 12, 13 and page 30. PHOTO: Samuel O’Brien
Pages 4-5
MERTON RACES A CRACKER
Big clean-up after wild thunderstorm
MANSFIELD is continuing the clean-up from a wild thunderstorm which lashed the shire last Tuesday, with winds over 90kmh and heavy rainfall causing damage across the district. Storms brought down trees and damaged power lines, with multiple trees across the Midland Highway, with stretches between Benalla and Lima South particularly hard hit and water over the road at various locations.
BY EMMA OLIVER
eoliver@ nemedia.com.au
Mansfield Steiner School principal Glenn Hood confirmed the school suffered extensive damage to its grounds and established trees, which will require considerable cleanup costs. “We are proud of our gardens and grounds and any loss of trees is sad and takes a long time to
replace,” he said. For campers in the region taking advantage of the holiday season it also became a case of watch and act, with many encouraged to move to higher ground as flash flooding was predicted. The unsettled weather then continued into Wednesday, with electrical storms lighting up the evening sky on January 3. Thirteen local members from the Mansfield SES
were on call working January 2, with unit controller Roslyn Fauvel overseeing operations over a five hour period. “Luckily, we had warning two days preceding Tuesday’s storm that it had the potential to be massive,” said Ms Fauvel. “The Bureau of Meteorology issued lots of advice and we were prepared in case of emergency.” Mansfield SES received 13 requests for assistance,
primarily clearing trees over driveways and blocking access points. “Many of these call-outs involved multiple trees down in each location, and there was an old shed that also lost its roof,” said Ms Fauvel. “We heard reports of a trampoline flying through one of the newer estates, but locally there were no call-outs to flash flooding and we weren’t required to do any sand bagging.” Ms Fauvel attributes this
to the nature of the slowmoving storm front, which she said was not the usual weather pattern for storms in the state. She was also surprised by the quiet start on the morning after the storm, as crew members waited for calls to come in requesting assistance. As a result, Ms Fauvel encouraged residents who are not capable of chopping up trees and removing debris to make contact. ■ Continued page 2
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