Fairfield's creeks and roads
Prospect Creek and the floodplain
Prospect Creek winds through Fairfield, and the town centre sits on floodplain ground near it. Eight creeks rise in Fairfield City and run on to the Georges River, and Sydney gets flash flooding in heavy storms.
When water has come up over the floor
Don't try to start a car that has sat in floodwater. Leave the key out, and tell the mechanic it was flooded so they check the oil, the fuel and the wiring before anyone turns it over.
The Horsley Drive
The Horsley Drive carries a lot of traffic through Fairfield, and Hamilton Road is the other main route. Stop-start driving on roads like these is what NRMA says uses up brake pads sooner.
Buying used after a flood
Transport for NSW says many flood-damaged cars are written off and can't be re-registered, but some aren't, and those can be sold at auction or privately. That's a good reason to have any used car inspected before you hand over money.
Mobile mechanics around Fairfield
Flat batteries, cars that won't start, and a lot of routine servicing can be done where the car is parked. For anything that needs a hoist, like a clutch or a gearbox, the car goes to a workshop. In NSW the business sending a mobile mechanic still needs a motor vehicle repairer licence.
Over a flat, busy area like this, telling the mechanic exactly where the car is saves time: the street, the side of the road and anything near it. Mechanics in Cabramatta covers the council's other big centre.
If it were our car
If ours had been sitting in water, we'd leave it where it is, pick "Come to me (mobile mechanic)" and write "flooded" in the note. Whoever comes then knows to check it properly before trying to start it, because turning over a flooded engine is what can do the real damage.