More than a dozen people have been rescued from floods in Victoria, but an 88-year-old farmer whose ute was found in a dam is still missing.
The ute was swept away by floodwaters and found in the dam in Wallacedale on Wednesday afternoon, but police and divers could find no trace of the farmer.
Emergency services ramped up their search on Thursday, with police divers set to scour the dam again.
State Emergency Management Commissioner Craig Lapsley said the man would have faced local roads covered in water.
"(He was) driving a country road that we suggest he knows extremely well that he probably crosses every day of his life," he told reporters on Thursday.
"The road was covered with water and it appears that the vehicle is now in the dam.
"There's no sight of the person."
Police do not believe the man was in the car at the time.
One of two dogs tied to the back of the ute died.
Heavy rain has inundated most of the state this week, with the central and north west region still bracing for major flooding.
Residents in Charlton in the Mallee are on alert as the Avoca River rises.
It is expected to reach seven metres at about midday on Thursday before peaking at 7.5m on Friday morning.
"We think there are 12 homes that have either been flooded already or are under real risk as we get to the peak of those flood waters," Premier Daniel Andrews said on Thursday.
Power is out to 8000 customers in Charlton, Wedderburn and the surrounding areas.
Eighteen municipalities in Victoria have been affected by the floods that have caused damage in 10 of those areas,, Mr Andrews said.
Seventeen people have been rescued from floodwaters over the past three days by emergency services.
Damage assessments are underway as the rains subside.
Thirteen schools were closed on Thursday and 184 roads are closed including sections of the Great Ocean Road.
There are major flood warnings for the Loddon and Wimmera rivers.
Moderate warnings are in place for the Barwon, Glenelg and Werribee rivers.
SA government preparing to plan flood recovery
South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill is preparing to meet with ministers to discuss how the state can recover from some of its worst flooding in years.
Mr Weatherill has called an emergency management committee meeting for Thursday afternoon.
Wind gusts of more than 90km/h and rainfall of more than 100mm battered the Adelaide Hills on Wednesday, fuelled by an intense low pressure system.
The State Emergency Service responded to more than 800 calls for help, most for property flooding or trees across roads and buildings.
Emergency Services Minister Peter Malinauskas said the emergency management committee would learn the full extent of the damage.
"The idea of that committee is we really get a full picture of the scale of the damage and then from there the government can start to work out its response regarding recovery," Mr Malinauskas told ABC radio.
Councils in Adelaide's eastern suburbs, which are typically worst hit by floods, are urging the state government to spend more on flood mitigation measures.
Mitcham Mayor Glenn Spear said a network of five councils had developed a $140 million flood mitigation plan, with the cost to be split between the councils and the state and federal governments.
But he said the federal government had withdrawn its one third funding and state Water Minister Ian Hunter had not commited enough cash.
"He's allocated $4 million a year over the next 30 years to flood mitigation measures, over the whole of the state. So I guess I'm not happy with that," Mr Spear told ABC radio.
But Mr Hunter said local councils should take charge of managing stormwater.
"Stormwater management is a local government issue. We're helping them because we think this is an area that needs that state assistance," he said.
