Russell Castley, 82, is the guardian of the public housing complex in Moore Street, an area which was under water on Wednesday night after the region was hit by a massive storm.

Despite all which had gone before, Mr Castley was roaming the property in his quest to help others on Thursday morning.

Having been evacuated the night before, he returned at 5am, transported by an accommodating police officer.

Across Thursday, Mr Castley was moving between his home and the relief station at Doug Lindsay Reserve to check on the wellbeing of neighbours.

The lean octogenarian has a history of toughness and a reputation for fighting against injustice and for the underprivileged.

In one recent incident, his stubbornness was evident.

"I thought I was having a heart attack three or four weeks ago," Mr Castley said.

"I had two options: call an ambulance, because I had pain in the chest and pain in my left arm, or go and lie down on the bed. I went to the bed. I woke up the next morning."

Mr Castley is currently pursuing legal action in relation to a fall and injury from more than three years ago.

"Solicitors are hard people to deal with," he said.

"I hope they can get it done before I die."

In Mr Castley's earlier years, he was involved in unionism and even stood for state parliament, representing the ALP. He was also president of the Victorian Public Tenants Association.

His desire to fight for a cause is innate.

"It gets me in trouble sometimes," Mr Castley said.

"(However) I can't stop doing it."

Mr Castley's inner strength has been invaluable in dealing with the path of devastation carved out by Mother Nature. Of the 32 residential units in the area, only four were relatively untouched.

Bins were knocked over throughout.

A large body of water, just beyond the units, remained.

"It will dissipate in time," Mr Castley said.

In most units, the carpets were saturated, every step leading to an explosion of water.

"None of these people will be able to come back and live in them. It will be quite a while. It could turn into months in some cases," Mr Castley said.

Disaster scenes remained on Thursday morning.

Yet, when all is said and done, it will take more than a catastrophic weather event to make Mr Castley roll over.

"I'll be back today," he said, foretelling his return late Thursday. "I've got to clean the water out."

Action plea as floods hit

A long-term Creswick resident, affected by floods on multiple occasions over many years, has had enough.

Mark Patterson, a 26-year-homeowner in the main drag of Albert Street, has felt the full power of Mother Nature in the 2010, 2011, and 2022 floods.

With his house badly damaged again during Wednesday's horrific floods, Mr Patterson is frustrated with parties not taking responsibility.

"I'm over it!" an emotional Mr Patterson said. "Something's got to be done."

Mr Patterson believes a number of factors contributed to the episode which has left him and his wife without a place to live.

One factor is to be found outside the front of his house, the direction from which the water came.

"My house actually got flooded from the front out to the back," Mr Patterson said.

"This was storm water. Between here and the supermarket, (there is) only (one) drain.

"This front drain (in the service lane), I've been informed this morning by Hepburn Shire, it isn't their problem, it's VicRoads' problem."

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Another factor is at the opposite side of the Patterson homestead.

"At the rear of my property, I have a council drain that was blocked," Mr Patterson said.

The water course which flows behind the house runs through multiple culverts. Fallen branches were still lying across the culverts on Thursday morning.

"The culverts are no good because they collect the junk and the water flows back," Mr Patterson said.

The north-flowing waterway is also problematic as it contains growing vegetation.

"When I spoke to the council this morning about the creek needing cleaning, he said, 'It's been cleaned'," Mr Patterson said.

"They don't even keep an eye on what the contractors are doing. It's a joke."

The entire weather event unfolded in 20 minutes, according to Mr Patterson.

"The rain started," he said.

"I was sitting inside. My daughter rang me. She asked, 'How much flood water do you have?' I said, 'What are you talking about?'

"I came to the front door and looked out. My two cars were under water. I took them and parked them on the hill. By the time I came back, the water was just about at the floorboards. By the time I got to the loungeroom, there was already water in the house."

At its worst, the water level was 30cm high throughout the entire building. The floor remains damp, silt is everywhere, the exisitng carpet is saturated, items which could be moved have been placed on beds and tables. Cupboards, the refrigerator, and the dishwasher have been affected.

"My kitchen which I put in 10 years ago, I'm going to need a new one," Mr Patterson said.

The Pattersons' predicament is near-hopeless.

"(On Wednesday night), my wife and I stayed in our house on our couch," Mr Patterson said.

"It was the only thing that was dry. "The insurance company said they will send somebody out to clean. You can't clean this."

Mr Patterson finds himself in an unenviable state.

"I don't know my short-term future," he said.

"We can't get accommodation in town because the motel's flooded and the resort, all the roofs caved in. My son's got a caravan so we're looking at getting his caravan. We could go and stay (at my son's house), but last time we were flooded, I got looted."

However, the Creswick advocate remains resilient.

"Long-term, this is my home," Mr Patterson said.

Cometh the hour, cometh the helpers

When the torrential downpour hit Creswick on Wednesday night, selfless characters mobilised without a second thought.

The SES was responding to call-outs; the fire brigade was helping to evacuate; the police were assisting where it could; and the Salvation Army was setting up a relief station at Doug Lindsay Reserve, a locale more associated with sporting clashes.

Members of the Salvation Army experienced a busy night at the well-resourced facility.

Major Craig Farrell was front and centre.

"We provided bedding and breakfast this morning. We're feeding the firefighters," Major Farrell said in an understated fashion.

A couple of Salvation Army members fom Hoppers Crossing had made their way to the town, aware their support was going to be essential. One had arrived at the reserve at 1am Thursday morning.

"I was happily watching the cricket," the elder of the two said, outlining what he had been doing before thrust into a crisis.

Another Salvation Army trooper, Ellen, was manning the food tent. She had travelled from Ballarat on Wednesday night, and had returned to Ballarat for two hours sleep, before travelling back to Creswick. She was cooking up a feast and offering all and sundry much-needed sustenance.

Observing the surrounds made it clear those who could least afford to get hit hard were hit the hardest.

"It's quite significant for people," Major Farrell said of the flood's impact on the underprivileged.

"It's just terrible. Down-to-earth, salt-of-the-earth people and a lot of elderly people (were affected).

"Last night, there was a lot of elderly people who couldn't stay even in this environment so they were shipped to hospitals. (It's) not great."

One vulnerable resident who needed to take advantage of the Salvation Army's humanitarian efforts on Thursday morning was Graham Walker, a public housing tenant.

Mr Walker is handicapped, his physical state having slowly deteriorated since a motorcycle accident in 1978.

Mr Walker was impotent in the face of the torrent of water on Wednesday evening.

"I was at home," Mr Walker, who remains appreciative of the work of the SES and the fire brigade, said.

"I saw the water come across. It came through the front door as they got me out the back door."

Before being transported to the relief station by a trusted friend, Mr Walker helplessly sat outside his Moore Street unit as sodden carpet was pulled from the floor. He was worried about the future.

"The bed's set up for me; the shower's set up for me," he said.

"I've got to stay here. I have no choice. I want to stay independent for as long as possible."

While concerned about what lay ahead, Mr Walker was in good hands at the Doug Lindsay Reserve as he was greeted with warmth by the compassionate relief workers... and a comforting cup of coffee.

Back to work for town's dynamic duo

In the wake of Wednesday night's devastating flood in Creswick, business owners were rolling up their sleeves.

Biggin & Scott directors Michael DeVincentis and Tom Shaw were not wearing the fine suits usually associated with those in real estate. They were in civilian attire, along with colleague Katie Minchinton, looking to get their Albert Street office up and running.

Mr DeVincentis, a former architect, and Mr Shaw, a young man of steely resolve, had rushed to the office on Wednesday.

"At one stage, it was right across the road," Mr DeVincentis said, recalling the previous evening's water level.

"The SES was saying there was more coming and it's going to be four-feet deep.

"We thought we'd mop it out anyway."

The two men cheekily likened themselves to Batman and Robin, although there was some disagreement as to who was which hero.

"We put our undies on the outside of our pants and we got to work," Mr Shaw said with a wry smile.

As Thursday morning progressed, the recovery effort continued. Mr DeVincentis was proudly ridding his branch of excess water. There were no airs and graces.

"You can't ask someone to do something you won't do yourself," he said.

The two agents remained committed to their tenants and landlords throughout.

"Last night, as we were coming down here, we got one of our property managers to send an SMS to all of our tenants, offering what support we could," Mr DeVincentis said.

"Our team's working back at the Daylesford office now. The property managers will be letting landlords know; they'll notify the insurance companies."

"We're contacting all the commercial shops we manage up and down the main street," Mr Shaw said with a similar level of care.

All the while, a positive disposition prevailed.

"In the face of adversity, we have to be cheery," Mr DeVincentis said.

"That's the only way to be," Ms Minchinton concurred.

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