Who to call first in Mackay
| Call first | Why | |
|---|---|---|
| Sewage overflowing or a blocked sewer | Mackay Regional Council, by phone, straight away | Council investigates and repairs its own network, and private contractors aren't allowed to work on it. If the cause is in your drain, you then book a plumber. |
| Water leaking at or before the meter | Council | Council maintains everything up to and including the meter at your boundary. |
| A burst pipe past the meter | A plumber | All plumbing after the meter is the owner's responsibility. |
| A gas smell | Your gas supplier's emergency line, from outside | Then a licensed gas fitter to find and fix the leak. |
While you wait
Shut off the water
Mackay's meters sit at the property boundary. Turn the stop tap there clockwise to stop a burst inside.
Stop using the drains
If sewage is backing up, no flushing, showers or washing until it's sorted.
Check the gully
The overflow relief gully in the yard is meant to let sewage out there instead of inside the house. Clear anything sitting on its grate.
Leave flooded gas appliances off
After a flood, Queensland requires a licensed gasfitter to inspect the gas installation and appliances before they're used.
Mackay emergency facts
A four-hour target
Council's Customer Service Standards aim to respond to 90 per cent of sewer incidents, and of water incidents, within four hours of formal notification.
Heavy downpours
Mackay M.O has recorded 388.6 mm in a single March day, and averages 313.3 mm in February. Council asks owners to keep stormwater out of the sewer, including through illegal rainwater connections.
Council's own figures
In its 2025 figures to the state, council reported 15 sewer main breaks and chokes on 966.7 km of main, and 43 water main breaks. Even so, council wants the first call for any blocked or overflowing sewer.
What the plumber will do
On arrival, a plumber will isolate the problem so the damage stops, then find the cause: a burst pipe, a failed hot water valve, a blocked house drain. Some repairs happen on the spot; others need parts and a second visit.
For a blocked drain, the plumber works only on your side of the jump-up. If they find the blockage is in council's sewer, they should stop and tell council, because council does that repair.
Urgent work still needs a licence
Check the plumber's name and QBCC licence number in myQBCC before they start, even late at night. A gas fitter needs a Queensland gas work licence or authorisation, which you can search on the RSHQ Portal without signing up.
Ads from QBCC licensees have to show their licence number. If the business you found online doesn't, that's worth noticing.
What we would do
Ring council first for anything involving its sewer or the water meter, rather than paying a plumber to find out the problem isn't yours. For a burst past the meter, shut the stop tap at the boundary and book a plumber who takes urgent work. Ask them to make it safe tonight and quote the full repair once you can compare. And if the house has flooded, keep every gas appliance off until a gas fitter says otherwise.