Shepparton and Mooroopna were finally reunited on Thursday morning after being separated by a closed Peter Ross Edwards Causeway since Saturday evening.
The road linking the two towns opened at 10.25am Thursday, with the speed limit reduced to 40km/h for the journey.
But it meant that Mooroopna residents who had evacuated to Shepparton could finally get home to see how their homes had fared, business owners could see what happened to their shops and families were reunited.
Mooroopna residents could also get to Shepparton for supplies they had not been able to access.
A walk down Lenne St showed some businesses had managed to open their doors in a restricted form.
Bill and Beats had managed to remain mainly dry and was selling coffees and a restricted food menu for takeaway.
Many other McLennan St businesses saw shop owners and an army of family members and other helpers sweeping water and mud from the shops and cleaning up as best they could.
Some were selling coffees or cold drinks as they cleaned their floors.
Workers from businesses freely donated their time, cleaning shop floors and footpaths of caked-on mud left behind by flood water.
Peter’s Fish and Chips owner George Kontakos summed it up best when he thanked the people of Mooroopna for their help and support in the clean-up of his shop, with customers among those to roll up their sleeves and help.
“Mooroopna is a close-knit community full of amazing people,” he said.
Unfortunately it appeared that not everyone had been kind during the flood, with four McLennan St businesses having smashed windows.
Looking around the streets, it was easy to see the devastation faced by many Mooroopna homes.
Household appliances, mattresses, furniture and ripped-up carpet lined front yards, as residents took on the heartbreaking tasks of cleaning up after the flood water receded.
Others still had flood water through them on Thursday, with residents having to wait longer to finally get back in to see the damage.
Several roads were also still closed because water was over them.