It is all too easy to end up in water before you know it and Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council has a responsibility to ensure adequate warning is provided for motorists. 

The present scenario council employs for dealing with flooded causeways is not working.

While council put barriers on all causeways in town last Saturday morning warning motorists they were not to attempt to drive through, the issue existed on Friday night, and in the dark was arguably more dangerous. 

Causeways were already well up, yet the after-hours phone number provided by council on their website went unanswered when one resident from the Local Government Area tried to warn council about the flooding. 

Council staff deserve their time off and a lack of response should not reflect poorly on them, however it can not take a death from someone entering a flooded causeway for increased safety measures to be implemented on local causeways.

A proposal to install permanent lockable gates, which can be closed and locked by any emergency service, is a step in the right direction.

The question will be, when will the causeways be locked? However if the same timing is applied as now when barriers are put up, no-one should be unhappy. 

Furthermore, there is not a causeway in town which can not be easily diverted around. 

While the proposal may seem to some to be a costly exercise to protect people from their own foolishness, it is in fact a measure which could save lives. 

The dramatic warnings about driving in floodwaters do not exist to scare people; they exist as it is an extremely dangerous activity. 

If these gates prevent motorists driving into floodwater they will be well worth the purchase price.  

If they ensure causeways are closed in a timely fashion without relying on the availability of council staff they will also be worth their money.