A new collaboration has been launched for Greater Melbourne catchment flood warnings. 

An improved flood warning system for Greater Melbourne catchments will be the focus of an implementation group jointly run by Melbourne Water, the Bureau of Meteorology and the Victoria State Emergency Service (VICSES) in the wake of the October 2022 Maribyrnong River event.

The agencies will evaluate options and work together to streamline flood forecasts and warnings - one of a range of measures initiated by Melbourne Water after hearing the stories, concerns and feedback that have emerged during the Independent Review into the flood.

The implementation group will focus on bringing Greater Melbourne riverine catchments into line with the rest of Australia by transferring responsibility for riverine flood forecasts and warnings to the Bureau.

Melbourne Water will continue to provide flash flood intelligence for the urban settings to VICSES to enable streamlining of flash flood warnings into the future.

Melbourne Water says it has heard directly from hundreds of residents and stakeholders in flood impacted areas, through submissions to the Review and contributions to a special ‘Share your experience’ report documenting experiences of the flood.

Hundreds of members of the community also attended six drop-in information sessions between January and March.