ACTSES Chief Officer Steve Forbes (left) demonstrates the effects of a flood in Canberra by using the newly created flood table, designed and created by the men at the Belconnen Men’s Shed. Photo: Jarryd Rowley.
We all know about the damage floods can cause, but now, thanks to some awesome innovation from the Belconnen Men’s Shed, people can see the effects without putting their property in harm’s way.
A new interactive flood table, hand-created by the Men’s Shed, demonstrates how quickly a flood can rise in the ACT and the flow-on effect of rising water.
The new table will be used by the ACTSES to visually educate Canberra residents about floods by featuring a steady, flowing tap that slowly fills a diorama designed to replicate the topography of a section of northern Canberra.
Belconnen Men’s Shed president Gordon Cooper said the SES approached the Men’s Shed in the middle of 2025 to build the project.
While it took several months to plan, the members of the shed began construction on the table in early 2026.
“We’re really happy with the outcome of it. Volunteers did all the work. There was a lot of labour involved in bringing it together, then painting it, waterproofing it, building the stand for it and getting it to this point now.
“We’ve got so many brilliant men in the shed of various backgrounds; so many people are very good at working on computers. They did all the planning and mapping so that we could cut out the profiles. There are about 12 different layers of wood in the flood table, all planned and put together by the shed.”
The flood table took the Belconnen Men’s Shed around 6 months to construct. Photo: Jarryd Rowley.
ACTSES Chief Officer Steve Forbes thanked the Belconnen Men’s Shed for bringing the educational flood table to life.
“We’ve found people in Canberra are more visual learners. It’s easier for us to engage with the community when we’ve got aids to help us do that too,” he said.
“After seeing the final product, it just left us thinking, ‘How good is the Belconnen Men’s Shed?’
“They’ve got everything needed to do a project like this, too, from engineers through to people that are really good at playing with all their laser cutting tools and their carpentry, their painting. Every aspect of this has been fantastic.
“They’re a very like-minded organisation to ours. They love giving back to the community, just like our SES volunteers do.”
The project was funded through the Australian Government’s National Emergency Management Agency’s Disaster Ready Fund.
Minister for Police, Fire and Emergency Services Dr Marisa Paterson said the project demonstrates the innovation of the groups awarded the funds.
“This project highlights the strength of local collaboration, bringing together ACT SES operational expertise with the craftsmanship and community spirit of the Belconnen Men’s Shed.
“Together, they have created a practical and engaging resource that supports problem solving, preparedness and a more resilient ACT community.
“This is one of many projects the ACT has delivered in recent years, and I look forward to seeing even more initiatives progress.”
