RELATED: Flooding causes ‘widespread’ road damage in Bendigo

Up to nine roads in the Central Goldfields Shire remain closed after sustaining damage in recent flooding.

The shire’s operations manager Glenn Deaker said the damage was mostly concentrated in low-lying areas and around bridges and culverts.

“There’s a lot of debris to clean up, you’ve got logs and so forth stuck on bridges and culverts so we’d be really keen to get that sorted out in case we do get more rain,” he said.

Mr Deaker said it was too early to say what the total damage bill would be as the shire’s efforts were still concentrated on facilitating access for residents.

“We’re currently getting around and assessing the damage so where some roads still remain closed we are still endeavouring to provide access to properties,” he said.

“Our first priority is to make sure the residents have got access, that’s the number one priority and that means remedial repairs to at least get people through.”

Mr Deaker said the council had successfully reopened the majority of the roads that were closed last week.

“We’ve got a fair few of them open but [some] roads are either closed because they’re still flooding, so there’s still water over them, or they’re damaged.”

“We’re still assessing the roads that may need further repair before we can actually open them.”

A spokesman for the Buloke Shire said no significant road damage had been reported so far.

“There is still water that needs to fall away in some areas before the real damage can be assessed,” he said.

VicRoads regional director Mal Kersting said it was still too early to accurately measure the impact of the floods on the region’s highways.

“Safety is our number one priority and we will not be opening roads or bridges until it is safe,” he said.

“Flood water can damage the structure of the road or bridges. It may look fine, but it may not be safe. If a road is closed it's for a reason - don't risk it. 

“We will prioritise inspections in the flood affected areas and repairs will then be prioritised and conducted as needed. This will take time - please be patient.”

For the latest road closure information, download the VicRoads VicTraffic App or visit the VicRoads website. 

To report road hazards to VicRoads call 13 11 70.

Road in the Central Goldfields Shire that remained closed as of 8am on Monday:

Roads closed in the Buloke Shire: