Cyclones, floods, bushfires: Queensland disaster bill tops $30 billion

Disaster experts are now using “unimaginable” worst-case scenarios to prepare for record-breaking extreme weather events as the state’s total damage bill tops $30 billion.

DISASTER experts are now using “unimaginable” worst-case scenarios to prepare for record-breaking extreme weather events of cyclones, floods, bushfires, and drought as the state’s total damage bill tops $30 billion.

As Cyclone Oma looms off the state’s southeast corner, Queensland has been ravaged by nine disaster-declared events in our most extraordinary summer of disasters yet.

In just four months, the Sunshine State has endured “never-before-seen” and “unprecedented” extreme weather events including “zombie” cyclones, “uncharted” rainfall and floods, “hottest-ever” heatwaves and “firestorm” wildfires.

Officials warn catastrophic natural disaster impacts and the economic, social and emotional toll will only become “more intense, more volatile, more frequent and more costly” in future compared to the last decade.

Flooded homes in Townsville which was declared a disaster during the monsoon rain event. Picture: Facebook

Latest figures and a map exclusively compiled for the The Courier-Mail reveal almost no part of the state has been left unscathed this season.

Out of a total population of about five million, almost two-thirds of all council districts (51 of 77 local government areas) have been disaster-activated this season – while more than half of the state’s primary producers are still in drought.

Beyond Townsville, some of the most flood-impacted areas such as Winton, Flinders, Richmond and McKinlay have also been in drought for nearly seven years.

“Obviously our state is used to disaster. But I think we’re a little complacent to the scale and sheer size of what we are dealing with,’’ Police Commissioner Ian Stewart told The Courier-Mail.

“Our weather patterns are changing, and thousands and thousands of lives are threatened by these events.

“Every time we are faced with these sorts of threats or cyclonic disaster, we must stand together and help each other, that’s the test of true resilience.”

Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Katarina Carroll calls it a “new reality” for the most disaster-affected state in Australia.

“We now have to plan using a worst-case ‘unimaginable’ scenario,’’ she said.

“It’s all melding into one, we went straight from horrendous firestorms beyond a scale we’ve ever before seen, into cyclones, record-high heatwaves, and unprecedented rainfall and devastating flooding.

PM Scott Morrison holds a press conference on the main road after he inspected the twisted and destroyed main railway line running between Mount Isa and Townsville with local mayors, which is surrounded by the rotting carcasses of dead cattle. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen/The Australian

“The extreme weather is only going to get more volatile, with more disasters, more often.”

Queensland’s Reconstruction Authority, the state’s peak disaster recovery agency, has a $15 billion works program to rebuild public infrastructure from a decade of disaster including Cyclone Yasi and the Brisbane floods in 2011.

According to an Australian Business Roundtable – Building Resilience report, a multiplier effect of two puts the total damage bill at $30 billion factoring in insurance payouts, tourism, mining, business and social impacts.

It is estimated the annual disaster economic cost will triple to $18.3 billion a year by 2050.

State Recovery Co-ordinator Major General (retired) Stuart Smith, who honed his skills in the war-torn Middle East and tsunami-hit Banda Aceh, heads the recovery effort in disaster-struck areas.

“This has been a significant summer of disaster,’’ he said.

“We have to think outside-the-box, with far-reaching vision and a long-term strategy.”

He said insurance companies had been put on notice to act with compassion and sympathy along with the prompt handling of claims.

In Townsville, eight out of ten small businesses were shut or impacted by the monsoonal event.

Latest figures by the Insurance Council of Australia show there have been 21,515 claims with estimated insurance losses of $887m in the city.

“This represents 19,614 residential claims and 1901 commercial claims,’’ ICA chief Rob Whelan said.

“All claims lodged are being assessed on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the damage sustained and the terms and conditions of individual insurance policies.”

State Disaster Co-ordinator Bob Gee said some parts of the state are still getting through the remnants of Cyclone Debbie two years ago.

“The truth is this is probably our worst season since 2011 in terms of bad economic and human impacts,’’ he said.

“It has been extraordinary and unprecedented. We’re resilient but have we thought enough about the cumulative impacts?

Residents and helpers remove flood-damaged items from homes in the suburb of Rosslea in Townsville. Picture: AAP Image/Dan Peled

“What astounds me is the willingness of others to help, the positive attitude to volunteer and reach out to those who are really hurting.

“I think it is obvious Queenslanders care about other Queenslanders.’’

He said it was a long haul ahead to recover and rebuild for thousands of families who are homeless or lost everything.

“I think the message is: “We’re not going away, and neither is the weather, we’ve all just got to keep boxing on”.”

In just four months, the Sunshine State has endured “never-before-seen” and “unprecedented” extreme weather events including “zombie” cyclones, “uncharted” rainfall and floods, “hottest-ever” heatwaves and “firestorm” wildfires.

Queensland Reconstruction Authority chief Brendan Moon said: “Future disasters are a reality of where we live”.

“But how do we adapt to be more resilient to cope with future climatic or economic disasters?,’’ he said.

“People come first and our focus is on reconnecting communities.

“We have to keep an eye on how we can make ourselves and our infrastructure stronger to handle future events.

“It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon, and it’ll take many weeks and months for many to get back on their feet in the recovery ahead.”