A caravan park in South Australia’s Riverland region was evacuated and closed earlier this week after defects were identified in the private levee built around the site.
Six people were evacuated from the Riverbend Caravan Park in Renmark on Tuesday night following an order from the SA State Emergency Service (SA SES).
The ABC reports the decision was made after engineers assessed the privately-built levee and identified a number of defects, including seepage, with the SES concerned about the risk of levee failure.
SA SES chief officer Chris Beattie said other defects included ‘transverse fracturing’ of the levee face and significant inundation of infrastructure behind the levee.
There has been lot of flooding along the Murray River this year. PIC: Clarko1959 / Pexels
He told the ABC that the standards of private levees vary considerably across the river system and it was ‘inevitable’ there would be other defects and potential failures detected.
SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said seepage was an issue.
“It means it’s deteriorating and as much as it will be devastating for those people to have to evacuate that caravan park – the people who are staying there and the people who run that – it’s about protecting life,” he told ABC Radio Adelaide.
However, the owners of the park have labelled the evacuation ‘disappointing’.
Edwards Group chief executive officer – owner of the Riverbend Caravan Park – Mr Stephen Edwards, told the Adelaide Advertiser that park occupants were never in harm’s way.
“The levee did not breach nor was the park inundated with water, and there was no immediate danger to anyone, including guests and staff,” Mr Edwards said. “The way (the SES) handled the evacuation and public announcements was disappointing as it sensationalised a sense of urgency that wasn’t necessary.”
He said it was important that the park worked together with SES, other relevant authorities and industry bodies to develop a best practice response that prioritises safety but also mitigates damaging fallout and reputational damage to our region.
Chris Beattie from the SES however defended the emergency body’s response.
“SES agrees with the Riverbend Caravan Park owner that its decision to evacuate the park was precautionary in nature and was based on engineering assessments that found defects throughout the levee,” he told the Adelaide Advertiser. “This posed an unacceptable community safety risk for life loss and serious injury should a rapid onset failure occur … once the risk had been identified SES took immediate action and worked closely with the park operator to ensure all customers and residents were notified in person, where possible, and found alternative accommodation where required.”
Screw Pegs Australia is offering Grey Nomad members the chance to win one of two Fully Stacked Starter Packs – each valued at $117. The pack includes:
Click here to learn about GN member benefits, how to join … and how to win!
