While the town was buzzing with disbelief, almost unable to comprehend the sudden deluge, the Junee SES had their hands full trying to help out whoever they could.

Two houses at Harefield were close to flooding as water escaping Harefield Road lapped as high as the homes’ front steps.

After a callout to the Junee Rural Fire Service, a tanker was able to pump the water away from the houses to keep further damage at bay.

Unable to stand the pressure of the fast moving water, sections of the railway line between Junee and Wagga were left without support as the water washed away the gravel beneath the lines.

The XPT service from Sydney to Melbourne was strandard for up to two hours with fears it would have to be evacuated, according to SES local controller Terry Bourke.

“We thought we would have to evacuate the XPT but we got enough basalt (gravel) underneath the lines to reverse it back,” Mr Bourke said.

The train made it back to Junee station before transferring passengers onto Wagga via bus.