The Byron Shire Council has described families on rooftops in Mullumbimby stranded by flooding and desperate for help.
Mullumbimby was isolated owing to floodwaters as of Monday lunchtime with the State Emergency Service saying it was too late to leave.
The SES had issued an evacuation order for Mullumbimby residents around 6am Monday.
Photos from The Echo showed torrents of brown water gushing through through the main shopping precinct in Stuart and Burringbar Streets and houses in the surrounding village were reportedly flooded.
The council reported power outages across the town and said Mullumbimby was its main priority in terms of flood impacts across the Byron Shire.
Director Infrastructure Services Phil Holloway said flooding was so bad authorities were scrambling to find a suitable evacuation centre for the town.
‘The RSL which normally operates as an evacuation centre is also flooded and was not activated by the Department of Communities and Justice,’ Mr Holloway said.
‘A priority is finding a suitable location for people in need right now,’ he said.
Main Arm house succumbs to landslide
A house in Main Arm reportedly succumbed to a landslide Monday morning while in the Lismore hinterland, the Corndale Hall could be seen floating in flood waters on photos reecently uploaded to social media.
It’s understood the Main Arm residents managed to evacuate the building before the landslide.
Mullum water restrictions, SGB flood pump failure
High level water restrictions were in place in Mullumbimby since council staff were unable to access Mullumbimby’s water treatment plant, Mr Holloway said.
Council staff were also investigating a power outage in South Golden Beach that had led to the failure of the local flood pump.
‘Staff are doing everything they can to get the pump operational as soon as possible,’ Mr Hollway said.
‘Essential Energy are aware of the issue and have it listed as an high priority site,’ he said.
Mr Holloway said surrounding weather systems meant Byron Shire’s danger was not over yet.
Shops in Byron Bay’s central business district were reportedly flooded on Monday along with properties in Brunswick Heads.
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