The body of a man has been discovered in flood-affected regional Victoria, taking the death toll from storms that wreaked havoc on eastern Australia over the Christmas period to 10.
Victoria police received information on Wednesday that it was believed a man was camping with a woman who was located deceased following flash flooding in Buchan in East Gippsland on 26 December.
The man, who is yet to be formally identified, was found dead on Wednesday afternoon.
Emergency services recovered the body of a woman at the Buchan caves campground on Tuesday night, after flash flooding left the reserve devastated.
The federal member for Gippsland, Darren Chester, visited the site on Wednesday, thanking Parks Victoria for their help moving campers to higher ground.
“Emergency crews are on the scene investigating the tragic loss of life and the park will be closed for the foreseeable future,” he wrote on Facebook.
“The scenes are more like an inland tsunami.
“It’s a hell of a mess and my thoughts are with the family of the woman who was killed, along with the Parks Victoria staff and emergency workers dealing with this traumatic event.”
Three friends who were enjoying an annual fishing trip are among the nine other Australians killed during a spate of dangerous storms over the Christmas period.
Eleven men were on board a yacht that capsized in Moreton Bay near Brisbane on Boxing Day, in what the Queensland police acting chief superintendent, Andrew Pilotto, described as a “horrific event”.
“The conditions were horrific. Visibility would have been down to two metres,” he said. “It would have been very difficult to survive in those conditions anywhere, let alone out on Moreton Bay.”
Pilotto said the bodies of two men were recovered from inside the boat and another was found in nearby waters. The men were aged 48, 59 and 69.
“It’s a very significant event for Moreton Bay to lose three lives,” he said.
Stephen Tait, a Brisbane teacher, was among those killed in the incident. In a Facebook post, staff from Iona College in Brisbane’s north-east announced the school chapel would be open on Thursday and Friday for those needing support.
“At this sad time, we hold firmly in our prayers Steve’s family, his friends, his colleagues and the wider Iona community. This is an extremely challenging time for many people,” the post read.
“At times such as these, familiar places can be spaces which provide comfort … Members of our community are welcome to drop in to say a prayer or simply sit in a moment of quiet reflection.”
In Gympie, two women died while exploring the ‘Love Tunnel’, a network of stormwater drains running from the banks of the Mary River near the Kidd Bridge to a park near the Gympie Senior Citizens’ Centre. The tunnel, known as a local adventuring location, runs for nearly a kilometre.
Supt Paul Algie said three women were exploring together when a large storm hit Gympie, washing them off their feet. The body of a 40-year-old woman was found on Tuesday night near the Mary River, and a 46-year-old woman was found in the Gympie weir on Wednesday afternoon.
One woman made it to safety, suffering “moderate injuries”.
“She is conscious and able to speak to investigators; she will make a full recovery but obviously this is a very traumatic event for her,” Algie said.
The incident followed the death of a 14-year-old boy in Tiaro, north of Gympie, on Christmas Eve, who disappeared from view while water tubing on the Mary River. Algie said the deaths were part of a “a very tragic Christmas” for residents across the region.
“Stormwater drains are not for people to go exploring and they have a very important purpose,” he said. “What’s occurred is a tragic result of that adventuring.”
In Brisbane, a nine-year-old girl was swept away in a stormwater drain on Boxing Day. Her body was found after an extensive search, police said. The girl’s family, from Rochedale South, “are requesting privacy at this difficult time”.
Dangerous storms also took the life of a man in Victoria on Christmas Day, when a branch fell on his property in Caringal, and in Queensland, when a 59-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree on the Gold Coast.
One man remains missing after being swept out to sea at Congo Beach, near Moruya on the New South Wales south coast on Tuesday. The 19-year-old went missing in rough surf, after assisting a family member on the unpatrolled beach.
Victoria police urged anyone who has information regarding anyone thought to be missing in the Buchan area to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
