People in flood-ravaged parts of New South Wales are being gifted an early Christmas present with funding unlocked to get them back into their damaged homes.
Key points:
- Flood victims are now eligible for an additional $20,000 in grants
- A resident in the NSW Central West says it has taken too long for the funding to arrive
- The mayor of Cabonne Shire Council says the money will help get victims back into their homes but more funding is needed
Parts of the state’s Central West were inundated for months and on November 14 the slow flood disaster became deadly, almost wiping out the town of Eugowra.
Those impacted across the Cabonne Council area, which also includes Cudal, Molong and Canowindra, will be eligible for a $20,000 joint state and federal government grant.
Hundreds of homes across the region were damaged or destroyed.
The grant is designed to help people get back on their feet by covering the costs of urgent repairs, replacing essential goods and restoring houses to a habitable condition.
Mavis Cross has begun the massive clean-up and reparation works at her house in Eugowra.
A wave of water that swept through the town shifted walls, ruined her floors and essentially destroyed all of her belongings.
To date, she has received about $1,000 from the state and federal governments and a caravan to live in temporarily.
Ms Cross hopes this latest financial assistance will be more forthcoming.
“It has taken five, nearly six weeks,” she said.
Getting people back home
For Ms Cross, the $20,000 lump sum will help her get her life back to some normality.
“It could help me a great lot — it’d get me right back in my home with everything done,” Ms Cross said.
“At the moment, I’m just doing the necessary parts and I’ll just have to do the rest later on.”
Although she suspects that for those who have lost far more than her the assistance may not be enough.
The pensioner had not taken out flood insurance, which she was quoted as costing $23,000 annually
Having lived in her home at Eugowra for 62 years, which never flooded, she thought it was not necessary.
“But things changed this time. It was more like a disaster — a tsunami,” Ms Cross said.
Funding a positive ‘start’
Cabonne Shire Council had been calling for the additional funding since the town was almost wiped out more than five weeks ago.
“It gives the flood victims a cash injection to get things started, to get tradesmen on the ground, to buy refurbished plasterboard for their homes,” Mayor Kevin Beatty said.
He said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese broke the news to him this morning.
“It is important, and leading into Christmas it couldn’t be a better announcement,” Cr Beatty said.
He said the funding was a positive “start” but more grants would be needed in the future.
“There is no doubt in the world that it will be adequate for some and far from adequate for others,” Cr Beatty said.
“There have been homes that have been totally destroyed, whereas some have had anything from minor to moderate damage in their homes.”
The council has vowed to continue lobbying for more funding as many residents need to start their lives from scratch.
The ABC has contacted the state and federal emergency ministers for comment.