For the last week the SES have been assisting the Clarence Valley community, with call outs for help due to the heavy rain and storms. The weekend saw most sporting and social events cancelled, including the Lower Clarence Relay for Life event, due to the inclement weather. The Maclean SES acting controller Ron Rushton said that Saturday was a busy day for them with a lot of sandbagging jobs on. “We had three flood rescues: Pacific Highway at Tabbimoble, one on Brooms Head Road and one at Banana Road at Mororo,” said Mr Rushton. “At Tabbimoble a man was trapped in his car in floodwater. On Brooms Head Road a utility was swept into a drain and the driver managed to get himself out prior to the SES arriving. The SES secured the vehicle. And at Banana Road, Mororo, a family was evacuated after water entered their home. “We had a total of 38 jobs over the weekend.” SES Clarence-Nambucca Region Incident Controller Caroline Ortel, said that across the Clarence Nambucca across region, they received 337 calls for assistance. “Across the wider Clarence Valley around 150 requests were received with the busier areas being Yamba and then Maclean,” said Ms Ortel. “The main issues were leaking roofs and the need for sandbags. “Our biggest concern however, were people driving through floodwaters and those living in isolated areas. “A man and his dog had to be rescued from a property at Upper Fineflower over the weekend.” People trapped on isolated properties remain a big concern to the SES, as they could be cut off by flood waters, which could continue throughout the week. “We had 5000 isolations (including the coastal villages of Iluka and Wooli) over night which has now been reduced to 4200 today (Monday) after the road to Wooli at Sandy Crossing, was re-opened. “Other areas of concern are people living on properties in isolated areas around Kangaroo Creek, Buccarumbi, Nymboida, Coutts Crossing and Copmanhurst. “At this time (Monday 20/3), Iluka road is closed due to rainfall run off associated with high tides. “We’ve had heavy rainfall north of this area around Evans Head, which floods into that area. The road continues to open and close when possible, to allow some traffic through. “Storms and isolated showers have been predicted throughout the week with possible heavy rainfall and storms at the end of the week. “We can’t stress the importance of being vigilant and prepared especially those living in isolated areas. These people need to stock up and make sure they have food and any medication they may need. “We’d like to thank the members of other units from around NSW who have come in to support our members during the last week. We currently have SES members from Shellharbour and Tamworth assisting at Wooli.” For more information: www.rms.nsw.gov.au – for live traffic www.myroadinfo.com.au – a really good informative site. www.bom.gov.au – for the bureau of meteorology