Flash flooding: leave wet electrics off
If water reaches power points, the switchboard, an air conditioner's outdoor unit or the hot water system, don't turn anything back on until a licensed electrician has tested it. Never wade through water near a fallen line or a submerged meter box. Call 000 if someone's in danger, Energex on 13 19 62 for lines down, and the SES on 132 500 for flood help.
Caboolture's river, storms and homes
Heavy rain, fast
The river drains a 370 square kilometre catchment from the D'Aguilar Ranges. In February 2022, more than 400 mm fell in 24 hours at several places in the catchment, and in January 2024 storms dropped 200 to 300 mm in six hours around Caboolture.
Lines down in storms
Storms brought power lines down in the Caboolture area on 28 October 2020, days before the Halloween hailstorm hit the rest of the south-east.
An older town
Settlement began in 1867, the shire was formed in 1879 and the railway arrived in 1888. At the 2021 Census, 77.3% of homes were separate houses and 19.7% townhouses or semis.
Plenty of renters
42.2% of Caboolture homes were rented in 2021, against 31.1% across the City of Moreton Bay.
After the water goes down
Floodwater leaves silt and moisture in power points, switches and wiring that can cause a fault or a shock later, even when everything seems to work. An electrician who does storm and flood repairs tests each circuit, replaces what's been under water and tells you what can be switched back on.
If you rent, tell the agent in writing and don't use anything that got wet. If you're the landlord, get the work done before the tenant moves back in and keep the certificate of testing and compliance.
What we'd do in Caboolture
If your home has flooded before, we'd ask an electrician whether any circuits can be split so the low-lying ones can be left off in a flood while the rest of the house keeps power. And we'd check the safety switches work, by pressing their test buttons, at the start of every storm season.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.