Kingston-on-Murray Caravan Park owners’ cancer battle amid Riverland levee breach
Cancer patient Barb Calvert and her husband Geoff lost their business, their income and their home overnight – now, they are struggling to put food on the table over Christmas.
Adelaide Hills & Murraylands
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While others will be celebrating with family this Christmas, Kingston-on-Murray Caravan Park owners Barb and Geoff Calvert will be picking up the pieces of their livelihood.
Barb, who is fighting cancer for the third time, now faces ongoing hospital treatment without a home or savings to fall back on after the fight against rising waters was lost on Wednesday, when the park’s levee failed.
In early-December, as water flow predictions escalated far higher than initial forecasts, Geoff and Barb poured their life savings – more than $350,000 – into bolstering the levee.
Their efforts proved futile.
The Riverland caravan park was evacuated on December 14, Barb’s birthday, after SES crews found defects in the levee, which was an existing structure from previous flood events.
Barb and Geoff have fought cancer and Covid in the seven years since taking over the family-run property – but the couple’s son, Byron Calvert, said this was the first time his father had ever cried.
“Geoff hasn’t had a day off in seven years. No matter what time of night it is, he’s always doing something. He’s a very hard worker and this is the first time I’ve ever heard of him crying in my whole life,” Byron said.
“He was always the one carrying the family and mum said he pretty much hasn’t stopped crying. It has devastated them both, emotionally and financially.”
Geoff said he believed the levee would have withstood the water, but the park was evacuated before they could finish the final 20 metres of the bank.
With their savings drained, Barb and Geoff have been forced to borrow money from family to keep food on the table over Christmas.
“They literally have nothing in their bank account,” Byron said.
“Mum’s been going down to the flood relief centre almost every day. It wasn’t just their home – that business was everything to them.
“Originally they starting building the levee because they were told insurance was going to run out before the flood hit. Now they’re working hard with brokers to see if they can get something – the park was their retirement fund, now it’s worth nothing.”
Byron said his parents felt let down by authorities, blaming initial predictions of lower flood heights for their desperate last-minute fight against rising waters.
He said Barb and Geoff felt the community had not been adequately prepared for the scope of the devastation.
“The information back when we were first told there was going to be floods was that it was going to be similar to the one they experienced six years ago, which barely touched the old levee bank,” he said.
“Then they kept upgrading it over time.”
In early November, when news of the flood event first began to break, peak flows were forecast at 175GL/day.
That figure was revised up to 185GL/day for the flood’s “second peak” by late November. By early December, the first and second peaks had been scrapped and flows forecast to hit 190GL/day to 220GL/day by Christmas.
While that figure has remained consistent since then, Premier Peter Malinauskas conceded this week that changing conditions meant, despite lower flows, the height of the water would be more akin to the 1931 River Murray flood.
While the Calverts wait anxiously to find out what their future holds, alongside them will be the tight-knit Kingston-on-Murray community who have become like their family, Byron said.
“They all care about Geoff and Barb, they all love them. Some of the people that have stayed there have become good friends with Geoff in particular, because he’s always out and about having chats with people,” Byron said.
“There has definitely been people in the community that have given back to them, which has bolstered their spirits as well.”
You can donate to the GoFundMe for Barb and Geoff here.
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