After experiencing three floods in 15 years, Abermain resident Michelle Beauchamp is pragmatic about the situation.
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"Today is better than yesterday, and tomorrow will be better than today," she said on Friday as sun shone over her rain-soaked property, while she emptied unsalvageable items into a skip.
Floodwaters entered Ms Beauchamp's William Street home - which fronts Swamp Creek - around 3pm Tuesday.
Having been through the floods of June 2007 and April 2015, and keeping an eye on the "exceptionally accurate" Higgins Storm Chasing site, Ms Beauchamp says she and her family were prepared for the worst.
"We were watching it rise," she said.
"We moved some stuff upstairs and put some things up high downstairs.
"The car and caravan were high and dry."
About 300mm of water came into Ms Beauchamp's house - about half the height it reached in 2015, and well below the six-foot mark of 2007.
Ms Beauchamp credits the work of Abermain District Landcare to remove vegetation from the creek for improving the situation this time around.
The group of volunteers formed in 2018 and held fortnightly working bees until the pandemic came along.
"COVID put a stop to things, but the work we were able to do in that short time has made it a lot better than it was before," Ms Beauchamp said.
"It has saved a lot, but we still got wet."
Ms Beauchamp said she felt for residents who were new to the area since 2015.
"They would have felt like I did in 2007," she said.
The clean-up also brought about a sense of déjà vu.
"The next day my nephew was going through with a wet vacuum and my husband was mopping up behind him... you feel like it's Groundhog Day," Ms Beauchamp said.
But as has happened in previous floods, the community has once again banded together to help their neighbours.
"We had a lot of support on the day, people offering to help us move stuff. There are a few stalwarts in the community who always come around to help us," Ms Beauchamp said.
As for the future, Ms Beauchamp predicts the next flood will come in about 2030.
"We might take the caravan around Australia for the year," she said.
Further along Swamp Creek, a number of properties near the Fourth Street bridge at Weston were inundated, while in South Cessnock, floodwater entered homes near the Oliver Street channel.
Work to construct a bund wall that is designed to mitigate flooding in South Cessnock is due to begin in October this year.
Elsewhere in the Hunter:
- The Hunter River peaked at 10.4 metres at Maitland shortly before 11am Friday morning
- The clean-up has begun in parts of Singleton, where many roads remain closed
- Newcastle, Port Stephens, Muswellbrook, MidCoast have been added to the list of declared disaster zones
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Krystal Sellars
Krystal Sellars is the Senior Journalist at the Cessnock Advertiser. Born and raised in Cessnock, she started her journalism career at the Advertiser in 2006 after completing a Bachelor of Communication at the University of Newcastle. Contact her on krystal.sellars@cessnockadvertiser.com.au.
Krystal Sellars is the Senior Journalist at the Cessnock Advertiser. Born and raised in Cessnock, she started her journalism career at the Advertiser in 2006 after completing a Bachelor of Communication at the University of Newcastle. Contact her on krystal.sellars@cessnockadvertiser.com.au.
