South Australia State Emergency Services (SASES) issued an evacuation order for Renmark’s Riverbend Caravan Park, leading to the relocation of six park guests to handle a possible levee failure that could risk public safety, according to a report by Glam Adelaide.
“Earlier today, engineers assessed the private levee built at the Riverbend Caravan Park and identified a number of significant defects which puts the levee at risk of failure. If the levee fails, there is a risk of flooding, which may impact anyone in the park behind the levee,” said SASES Chief Officer Chris Beattie.
Riverbend Caravan Park has not yet released a statement regarding the issue, clarifying its sudden closure.
Edwards Group CEO and Riverbend Caravan Park Owner Stephen Edwards said their guests and staff were not in immediate danger. He added that there was no levee breach or the park’s water was inundated.
“While we understand the importance of flood preparation and ensuring the safety of our community, it is perhaps timely that we all take away some learnings from last night. There was a miscommunication of the flood evacuation, and it’s important to correct this Misinformation,” Edwards said.
Heading to the Riverland first thing this morning, Edwards met with SASES authorities to discuss the learnings from last night’s evacuation.
“We have been consistently working with the SES and authorities on the engineering of our levees to ensure the continued safety of our guests and support the measures in place to prepare for the higher rivers coming our way,” he said.
He said it’s still early in the response phase, which is why he’s hoping to get the opportunity to speak more in general with the SASES to determine how situations such as this could be handled more effectively in the future and how their communication could be improved.
He added that how they handled the evacuation and the making of public announcements disappointed him since it created a false need for urgency that wasn’t required.
He further said It was essential to work in conjunction with SASES and other relevant agencies and bodies of the industry to develop a best-practice solution that prioritizes safety while minimizing the impact of consequences and damage to the reputation of their region.
He added that six people were moved from the Park and given ample notice before the SASES Emergency Warning and Media Release were released on the internet. Although the SES has closed the Park, it is secure with a group of Park staff members still present to ensure that the levee banks remain strong and prevent any damage caused to the Park.
The Edwards Group continues to collaborate with the SES, who are working to implement their Emergency Evacuation Plan for caravan parks within the Riverland region.
