Corowa and Wahgunyah communities separated as Murray River rises above eight metres

John Foord Bridge, which connects the riverside communities, was closed on Monday, with the river expected to reach at least 8.2 metres on Tuesday as the combination of increased water releases from Hume Dam and heavy rainfall takes hold.

Federation Council general manager Adrian Butler said water around Corowa's Civic Centre was rising 100 millimetres per hour.

"The releases they've accelerated the last week or so haven't been great. With the rain and then the Kiewa River coming in, which they can't control, we've ended up at eight metres," he said.

"They're talking about 8.2 tomorrow (on Tuesday), but it could be more than that. What we're seeing now is water from about four or five days ago at Albury."

Greens at Corowa Civic Bowls Club were completely underwater by the early hours of the morning

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Former president Ian Bilney has bowled at the club for around 20 years and never seen anything like it.

Mr Bilney organised to get the club's machinery, worth more than $30,000, out before it was damaged.

"There was a half a dozen machines (rollers and mowers) that we got out and we lifted everything else up higher. Hopefully it's high enough, but the way it's coming up, I don't know," he said.

Mr Bilney recalled pumping water from underneath the club in 1975, but said this was the first time he'd seen all four bowling greens, plus the croquet surface inundated.

"It's going to be a couple of weeks before the water stops coming in, so it will be a while before we're back playing on them," he said.

"We haven't played any games at home yet this season. We could get on because the greens weren't underwater until this morning, but we've had no parking."

Wahgunyah residents Jenny Hovard and Justine Smith lost access to their Barkly Street homes in a matter of hours, the latter needing a kayak for transport.

Mrs Hovard said a sewer pit at the front of her property began to overflow before it was attended to by Indigo Council staff.

Federation Council mayor Pat Bourke lives at Urana and said overland flooding was also huge concern.

"Urana is very different to Corowa because a lot of it is determined by the weir, but up at Urana it's all natural," he said.

"Urana is at risk at the moment because Lake Urana has filled, so there's no escape for the water."

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