WATER has gushed into Chaffey Dam after soaking rain fell in the catchment and boosted the supply to its highest level this year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
By the time the Leader went to print on Monday, the dam had already rocketed to 16.3 per cent capacity, with bucketloads more water expected to come flowing down the Peel River.
Tamworth's main water supply was sitting at 15.7 per cent capacity on Friday, after spending months hovering around 14 to 15 per cent.
READ ALSO:
In what is up there with one of the biggest daily rainfalls for the Head of the Peel near Nundle this year, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) gauge recorded close to 50mm of rain over the wet weekend, to 9am on Monday.
Data from Water NSW shows the section of Peel River at Taroona - which is just before the river hits Chaffey Dam - rose quickly and reached a peak close to 1.8 metres on Monday.
A Water NSW graph of the flows at Taroona shows about 2000 megalitres - or 800 Olympic swimming pools worth - of water could have potentially flowed on and entered Chaffey Dam by Tuesday.
Tamworth mayor Col Murray said he had been glued to the Water NSW website watching the water levels rise in real time on Monday.
"It's a real blessing," he said.
"For far too long we've been dealing with the threat of tighter restrictions and all the while knowing that summer is just around the corner when usage goes up.
"Hopefully it'll continue to rain for the next couple of days and the flows will pile on after that."
The Cockburn River also rose, adding gusto to flows when it met the Peel River.
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald. Email: afalkenmire@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald. Email: afalkenmire@austcommunitymedia.com.au
