Chief Officer of the SA SES Chris Beattie said six people were relocated to address a public safety risk from the possible levee failure.

“Earlier today, engineers assessed the private levee built at the Riverbend Caravan Park and identified a number of significant defects which puts the levee at risk of failure,” he said.

“If the levee fails, there is a risk of flooding which may impact anyone in the park behind the levee.”

Chaffey MP Tim Whetstone told ABC radio water was found inside the levee at the park yesterday.

“There was water inside the levee last night and that raised alarm bells. It has been reported to me that potentially it was groundwater that was being pushed up with the pressure of the raised river levels,” he said.

Downstream, the second Emergency Relief Centre opens in Mannum today while levee works continue on the main street of the town.

The first centre to open in response to the flood event, the Berri Emergency Relief Centre, opened last week with a relief centre at Murray Bridge to follow.

The new Mannum centre located at the Mannum Football Club, 28 Belvedere Rd opens this morning with services available 9am to 5pm, seven days a week.

It comes as Minister for Human Services Nat Cook tours the town and Emergency Relief Centre today.

Simone Bailey at Mannum levee. Photo: Tony Lewis/InDaily

Mid Murray Council Mayor Simone Bailey said the new relief centre will centralise the distribution of support for flood affected Mid Murray residents.

“This centre will be great because everyone has been really anxious about what’s available,” Bailey said.

“To have all of the issues about what assistance is available and having to ring different lines – I think everyone’s happy to know that there will be a local relief centre opening to help with all of those other issues.

“From tomorrow, they can come across they can get information about hardship, rental assistance, emergency accommodation, psychosocial support, food relief, support for primary producers, financial counselling, legal services and community outreach.

“There’s a huge range of supports that are going to be under the one roof.”

Bailey said while residents in Morgan and Cadell have been dealing with an emergency for a week, Mannum residents are still coming to terms with the impending flood.

“I think once the water hits the levees that’s when it’ll be the realisation that it is happening. The length of time that it’s taken to get to this point has been quite traumatic for people,” she said.

“The only issue is going to be once the ferry closes at Mannum, that those people on that side of the river will have to travel to Berri or Murray Bridge to get the services.”

One of the Mannum ferries is still in operation after the upstream ferry closed on December 1, while the Swan Reach and Morgan ferries closed yesterday due to rising water levels.

The Department for Infrastructure and Transport said the larger downstream ferry will be at risk of closure as river levels continue to rise.

“The downstream ferry is also significantly larger at 30 metres in length which has allowed increased passenger loads, compared to the 18-metre length of the closed upstream ferry,” a spokesperson said.

“The downstream service is at risk of closure once water flows reach between 120 and 130 GL/day, which may occur as early as mid-next week depending on how soon higher water flows reach Mannum.

“The Department is closely monitoring the impacts of the high water flows to provide as much advance notice as possible about operational status changes and ferry closures.”