Dozens of residents in Hamilton, in Victoria’s south-west, have been ordered to evacuate their homes as rising floodwaters threaten their properties, with other rivers across the state swelling after days of heavy rain.

An evacuation warning is in place for 45 homes and businesses along the Grangeburn River near Apex Drive, Holden Street and Abbott Street in Hamilton.

Water is spilling over a temporary levee and the structure is in danger of collapse.

Residents who have already evacuated have been told they should not return home until it is safe to do so.

Skipton, west of Ballarat, is also under immediate threat with the SES sandbagging homes and businesses as Mount Emu Creek threatens to break its banks.

The Loddon River is also causing headaches at Clunes, near Ballarat, while landslips and fallen trees have closed the Great Ocean Road from Moggs Creek to Lorne.

The State Emergency Service’s David Baker said the flood risk continued despite the easing rain.

“There’s still some rain in the atmosphere that will come down. That will have impacts as it consolidates with the rainfall that’s already hit the ground,” he said.

“Victorians just need to be aware, the state is saturated. Any rain that we’re getting at the moment has the potential to cause us some issues.”

There are moderate flood warnings for the greater Melbourne catchment areas, including the Maribyrnong, Werribee and Yarra Rivers and Dandenong Creek.

One month’s rain in just two days

Some parts of Victoria have received more than a month’s worth of rain in the past two days, prompting flood warnings for a number of catchments stretching from the south-west to the north of the state..

Mount William in the Grampians has recorded more than 100mm over the past few days, including 78mm on Tuesday.

It has been a welcome sight for farmers in the north-west and central areas, with Charlton seeing 31mm of rainfall, Swan Hill getting 21mm and Stawell experiencing 44mm.

But Gippsland bucked the trend, with very little — if any — of the wet weather reaching the state’s east.

The botanic gardens in Castlemaine and Malmsbury were also under water.