A Dubbo shopping centre was able to trade as normal hours after a late-night mishap that caused flooding to some stores.
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A contractor at Dubbo Square knocked a sprinkler shortly before 9pm on Thursday which caused water to gush out.
Crews from Dubbo Fire Station were on scene within minutes, shutting down the sprinkler system but not before several nearby shops experienced flooding.
The quick response by contractors, centre cleaners and the fire brigade minimised the damage and the main street centre was open and ready for trade the next day, a Charter Hall spokeswoman said on Monday.
Dubbo Square is currently undertaking a refresh with upgrades to the centre being carried out, the spokeswoman said.
New stores are to include a dentist, bakery and Liqourland and a more spacious shopping environment with raised ceilings, she said.
The works are due to be completed by early December 2017, she said.
When contacted by the Daily Liberal, Charter Hall, which has owned the centre since 2012, reported its contractor “accidentally damaged a sprinkler line whilst operating a scissor lift causing some flooding to nearby shops”.
“The fire brigade was automatically alerted and were on site within minutes and shut off the sprinkler valve water supply,” the spokeswoman said.
“The quick response by the contractors, centre cleaners and fire brigade worked hard to minimise the damage and have the centre open and ready for trade the next day.”
Mathew Dickerson, owner of Axxis in Dubbo Square, was at the centre when the incident happened.
“I heard a noise - a loud bang… and then saw a torrent of water,” he said.
He rang family who came down to help him and his staff shovel water out the door.
His store had only recently had a new timber floor put down and now it will have to be replaced.
“It’s a bit disappointing, but these things happen under construction,” he said.
“No doubt about it, it’s on its way to be finished and the outcome will be fantastic.”
Mr Dickerson said Charter Hall had been good in the aftermath, and were meeting the expenses.
He praised the emergency services crews who had responded and remained on scene for the mop-up.
“It would have been more work for us (retailers) without them,” he said.
Station officer at Dubbo Fire Station Matt Havercroft said they had received a call about 8.50pm and crews had shut down the sprinkler system and then helped remove the water.
There were 16 firefighters attending, who were there for about 2.5 hours, he said.
Faye Wheeler
I have been a journalist for more than a decade and in that time I have been keeping Daily Liberal readers up to date about issues affecting them and what's happening in their community. Throughout my career I have covered a range of rounds and most recently I have been focusing on the business round.
I have been a journalist for more than a decade and in that time I have been keeping Daily Liberal readers up to date about issues affecting them and what's happening in their community. Throughout my career I have covered a range of rounds and most recently I have been focusing on the business round.
