More than a thousand homes lost as cost of flood rises
The damage bill of Townsville’s flooding crisis is fast adding up, as receding waters revealing more than a thousand homes are seriously damaged.
Townsville
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THE damage bill of Townsville’s flooding crisis is fast adding up, as receding waters revealing more than a thousand homes are seriously damaged.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk this morning gave an update on the Townsville flooding crisis, saying more than $1.9 million in community recovery payments have so far been made.
One of the priorities, as well as beginning the clean up, is to find homes for the 200 residents still in evacuation centres across the region.
By the numbers
- $1.9 million in community recovery payments made
- 16,000 applications for assistance have been made
- 200 people still in evacuation centres
- 1480 damage assessments done
- 738 Townsville homes severely damaged
- 252 Townsville homes completely uninhabitable
- 21 schools in Townsville open today
- 100 extra police on the ground, with a back up of 310 officers on standby
- 250 QFES officers on the ground
- 150 Roadtek crews assessing roads and bridges
*current as of 9.30am Thursday
“Around 200 people are still in evacuation centres and our priority is to get people into safe places and get a roof over their heads,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“So far we’ve had 1480 damage assessments done, with 738 homes quite severely damaged and 252 homes are completely uninhabitable. That’s some sad news for families, it’s tough work for these families seeing their homes destroyed.”
The premier said a number of Townsville schools were also severely impacted, with plans being looked at to get students “back to normal” next week.
Options may include sending students to other schools or temporary classrooms, but no firm plans have been announced yet.
The premier, as well as the state disaster co-ordinator and QFES Commissioner Katarina Caroll will head to Cloncurry as the focus shifts to the west.
“I’ve spoken to some of our mayors and farmers and graziers in the north west … in Richmond, McKinlay, Flinders and Winton (they’ve had) a lot of cattle lost in the flooding,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“We’re listening, we’ve asked agricultural minister to talk to them to co-ordinate their needs on the ground.
“Hopefully by the weekend we’ll see the remnants of this monsoonal trough. It’ll be a big journey back and the best way people can help these communities is to donate to the NQ flood appeal.
“It’s not over yet, we need the sun to come out and the clean up can begin.”
Bruce Gunn from the Bureau of Meteorology said severe weather warnings for North Queensland were cancelled overnight.
“However there is still a risk of heavy rainfall and damaging winds with thunderstorms so we may issue severe thunderstorm warnings today,” Mr Gunn said.
“We expect the low to move off the coast through today and overnight to ease conditions but flash flooding still remains a risk, rivers and creeks will respond quite quickly with any falls.
“There are thoughts with the farmers out west, we heard quite distressing stories overnight, the Flinders Rivers has exceeded the 1974 flood level and that river is still rising.”
The premier said the QRA and QFES were doing “an amazing job” getting through more than 1480 assessments.
“At the moment we’re doing assessments of emergency accommodation and the Department of Housing, we’re speaking with private sectors in terms of any rentals so that will be the main focus,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“Minister de Brenni will go to Townsville tomorrow to see it first hand and make it happen.”
She said the clean up could take “weeks and months” for some residents.
“We saw the delays after Cyclone Debbie; it just depends on how quickly insurance companies can come through, assess and fix,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“With minor damage, people will likely get back in a week or so but the big damage it could be a lot longer.”
Originally published as More than a thousand homes lost as cost of flood rises
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