A summer to remember: drought followed by bushfires, and then floods.
Rain begins to fall on Saturday, 8 February 2020. It switches back and forth from showers to downpours throughout the weekend.
At 8pm on Sunday night, the RFS announces that the Currowan fire is officially extinguished. Finally.
Bureau of Meteorology data for our nearest weather station (Ulladulla, 7km south of Milton) reports more than 220mm of precipitation, most of it since Saturday.
Our rain gauge tallies suggest we've received 250mm of rain in 48 hours.
And now we're flooded. Narrawilly's northern and low-lying paddocks, including its swamp -- all of it devastated by bushfires in January 2020 -- are under water.
Somewhere, beneath the mud and inundation, is a dairy farm.
Elsewhere Esperanza, Antarctica enjoyed a balmy 18.3 degrees Celsius a couple of days ago. Overnight Sydney's northern beaches were flooding or eroding, depending on postcode. And, somehow, right now, people in the Shoalhaven are expected to change modes from bushfire recovery to flood evacuation.
"Same as it ever was?"
10 February 2020, 5.21pm: No rain for several hours. Flood waters in the swamp and across the farm's northern paddocks.
The flood waters drop a metre or so. Time to open the flood gates...
...if they can be located beneath the ashy, muddy water.
Now we wait for the flood waters to subside.
16 February 2020, 11.49am: Light to moderate showers continue throughout the week, adding another 90mm to what we've already received. It's wet.
Bright green shoots break through on burnt land lying above the flood waters.
BlazeAid-Milton volunteers are scheduled to re-fence perimeter fences, along Princes Highway, damaged or destroyed in the bushfires. All the rest -- the internal fences surrounding each paddock or along the creek banks -- will be checked, repaired or replaced by Narrawilly and Croobyar teams. The road to recovery is long (and presently unfenced).
17 February 2020, 9.34am: A team from Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) visits the farm. Check out their campaign: #ShowOurColours. We're in.
Photo credit: Max Phillips. (Thanks, Max!)
