Wild spring weather hits hard in Gympie, Fraser Coast, Bundaberg North and Mary Valley

If you thought Gympie, Fraser Coast and Bundaberg had been pummelled by more frequent and hectic storm this spring you would be right. Read what the Wild Weather Tracker has revealed about the Wide Bay.

The Wide Bay-Burnett received the fifth highest number of insurance claims for wild weather in Queensland during spring, new data released by NRMA Insurance reveals.

The latest edition of NRMA’s Wild Weather Tracker found there were just under 10,000 home claims for weather damage in spring across NSW, Queensland and the ACT — 3000 (or 35 per cent) above average and a new record for spring.

In Queensland just under half (48.5 per cent) of all home claims were the result of wild weather – 7.5% of all claims in Queensland came from the Wide Bay-Burnett, while the most impacted suburbs in the region were:

• Gympie
• Maryborough
• Bundaberg North, Hervey Bay & Imbil (equal third)

The report also revealed that residents of Wide Bay Burnett were the best prepared in Queensland, and were feeling better prepared now than in winter (up one place to #1), with the region’s self-assessed wild weather ready score rising to 73/100 (from 71 in winter).

File photo of damage from a former severe storm which hit parts of the Fraser Coast – Yengarie farmer Steve Miller among the avocado trees stripped bare by the hail and wind.

The third NRMA Wild Weather Tracker also features research of 1000 Qld residents which found:

• Two-thirds (66%) are worried natural disasters are becoming more frequent and severe (up from 62% in winter)
• 7 in 10 (71%) believe climate change is making severe weather and natural disasters worse (up from 69% in winter)
• 63% said took steps during spring to prepare their home and family for severe weather – this was up from just over half (53%) who said they did in winter

Thirty per cent of Queensland residents say they are not ready to respond if severe weather hits their suburb – this means 596,000 households don’t feel prepared.