Many regions across NSW and ACT have been impacted by storms and flash flooding over the past few days resulting in the cancellation of events and closure of sporting grounds and parks.
The Central Coast Mariners’ opening fixture of their 2022/23 A-League season scheduled to be played in Gosford last night was called off because of a flooded pitch with the club advising “unfortunately our game against the Newcastle Jets has been postponed due to the rain. Further updates on ticketing and rescheduling will be announced as soon as they are confirmed.”
Shellharbour City Council made the difficult decision to cancel Shellharbour Rocks the Park, a country and blues music festival that was scheduled to go ahead Saturday 8th October at Albion Park Showground.
Shellharbour City Deputy Mayor Kellie Marsh said the recent rain had already impacted the site and the predicted weather had left council with no other choice.
Mayor Marsh advised “the events team is not able to set up the site safely, posing a high risk for attendees, Council’s contractors, partners, crew and artists.
“I know that many people were looking forward to this unique event. I admire the dedication of Council staff and their efforts to try and bring the community a free, high-quality family festival that reflects the country village character of Albion Park. We are extremely saddened and disappointed to have to make this decision."
Parkes Shire Council has also made the difficult decision to cancel the 2022 Trundle ABBA Festival scheduled to be held on 15th October.
Parkes Shire Mayor, Ken Keith said the decision to cancel the event was made after Council received a briefing from the NSW State Emergency Service and Resilience NSW, regarding widespread heavy rain forecast for much of NSW.
Mayor Keith advised “we left the final decision for as long as possible, hoping for an improved forecast, but unfortunately, the forecast has deteriorated rather than improved.
“For all involved, we need to make a decision far enough in advance so people don’t get caught out with a last-minute, ad-hoc decision, and alternative arrangements for attendees and suppliers can be made.
“As a consequence of the severe weather predictions, our insurance provider advised us last week, that they would no longer be able to provide flood and wet weather coverage for the Trundle ABBA Festival, and we have not been able to source alternative insurance coverage.
“While we explored options to reschedule the festival to a later date; the reality is that we can continue to expect above average rainfall to at least the end of the year, and potentially into the New Year, with the likelihood of being able to secure flood and wet weather insurance remaining slim.”
Mayor Keith said all ticket holders will have the price of their tickets refunded.
“We know how disappointing this is for all those who had purchased tickets and were looking forward to attending the first ABBA Festival since 2019, as well as the Trundle community, who were looking forward to welcoming ABBA fans back, but we appreciate everyone’s understanding, given the situation we find ourselves in,” he said.
Parkes Shire Council had agreed to deliver the 2022 Trundle ABBA Festival, after having been approached by the former event organisers to assume responsibility for the event.
Mayor Keith added “unfortunately, the ongoing unpredictability of weather cycles, coupled with the difficulty of obtaining events insurance coverage, means that hosting outdoor events is certainly a high-risk business.”
As of Friday, ACT Government advised all of its turf sports grounds would be closed until Monday 10th October advising closures were “to minimise damage to turf surfaces.”
Lithgow Council was one of many councils across NSW that also closed their sports fields due to the ongoing weather conditions and to protect the condition of the playing surface. These fields are expected to remain closed until Monday 10th October 2022.
Turf managers at Horsham Rural City Council are also facing a battle against the wet weather as they work to have the municipality’s cricket pitches available for the upcoming season.
HRCC staff curate City Oval all year round. They also prepare wickets at Dudley Cornell Park and Sunnyside Oval before clubs take over the regular maintenance tasks during the season.
Team leader Darrell Gunn said it was usual for turf wickets to be unavailable until November depending on weather conditions leading up to a season.
While Sunnyside Oval and Dudley Cornell Park are in reasonable condition despite the weather, it’s a different story at City Oval where football finals were played.
“Saturated conditions for the Wimmera League grand final meant the centre of the ground was torn to shreds, so our team has been working hard to rectify that and have the wicket ready as soon as possible,” Gunn said.
“The persistent wet weather in recent weeks has impacted the preparations that would normally happen at this time of the year.”
In the meantime Gunn and his team are hoping for warm and sunny weather so they can make up for lost time.
Taronga Western Plains Zoo temporarily closed effective 8th October 2022 as a precautionary step for the safety of guests and staff due to extreme rain conditions and surface level flash flooding around the region.
Taronga Zoo released a statement noting “whilst our animals are all safe and keepers are adhering to our welfare standards and safety protocols, the high-water flow due to flash flooding over the circuit roads and paths is a concern to the safety of our guests on foot, bikes, carts, and cars.
“While the Zoo is temporarily closed to the public, Taronga’s essential staff will continue to ensure the welfare and safety of the animals in our care remains at the highest possible standard.
“We will be communicating with guests that have pre-purchased tickets for the coming period that refunds will be offered. Accommodation guests have been contacted by Taronga staff to provide communication and information regarding their stay.”
The rainfall and flooding was also expected to impact many national parks and campgrounds across NSW and as such NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service urged the public to re-consider plans to visit national parks over the weekend.
NPWS Executive Director Kane Weeks advised "heavy rainfall can also cause flooding, landslips, tree falls, wash out walking tracks and isolate roads and causeways.
"Given the recent and predicted rainfall and flooding, please reschedule any planned visits this weekend as closures can occur at short notice to keep our staff and visitors safe, which is our first priority."
Widespread closures in Blue Mountains National Park saw all fire trails, most camping areas and valley walking tracks between Lawson in the mid Mountains through to Mount Victoria and Mount Banks on the Bells Line Road close from Friday 7th October 2022.
The Newnes camping area in Wollemi National Park, Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area, Yerranderie Regional Park, Abercrombie River National Park (excluding Bummaroo Ford camping area) and the Turon, Marrangaroo, Capertee and Kanangra-Boyd National Parks also closed along with popular tourist destination Jenolan Caves.
Images (from top) The Central Coast Mariners’ opening fixture of their 2022/23 A-League season in Gosford at the weekend was called off because of a flooded pitch (credit: twitter.com/CCMariners); Shellharbour City Council cancelled Shellharbour Rocks the Park (credit: Visit NSW) and flooded roads (credit: NPWS/Environment NSW).
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