Council staff inspected the site at Shoalhaven Heads to assess the entrance and to determine if additional excavation works needed to be undertaken, and if safe to do so.
The east coast low-influenced wave intensities experienced overnight, and tidal inundations has caused sand to be deposited in the pilot channel that was formed yesterday.
From this inspection, it was deemed unsafe to operate machinery to attempt to move further sand on the beachside of the pilot channel. Safety hazards associated with these works could not be appropriately mitigated, due to the presence of extreme wave conditions and no access and egress points if a duress situation eventuated.
It is understood that floodwaters have entered the pilot channel excavated yesterday but have been unable to flow fully through to the sea as the berm on the ocean side has been influenced by wave action and wave runup that occurred overnight.
The water level at the entrance is currently 2.03 metres AHD (at 9:30 am), which is above the trigger level - 2.0 metres AHD. The water level at Nowra is 3.07 metres, which is also above the trigger level – 3.0 metres AHD.
Council staff will continue to monitor real-time data from the flood level gauges on a frequent basis throughout the day to make immediate and informed decisions if the system does not open naturally.
