Scott Morrison announces disaster recovery payments for 16 local government areas in Queensland, NSW

Residents in 16 flood-hit regions in Queensland and NSW can now access $1000 disaster recovery payments, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced.

Flood-affected Queenslanders in more than a dozen council areas will be able to get emergency disaster cash worth at least $1000 per person from Tuesday, the Prime Minister has announced.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison, in Brisbane on Monday, confirmed the federal government had activated disaster recovery payments worth $1000 per adult and $400 per child in about 16 more local government areas — 15 in Queensland and the other Lismore, New South Wales.

These Queensland LGAs are; Brisbane, Fraser Coast, Gold Coast, Ipswich, Lockyer, Logan, Gympie, Moreton Bay, Logan, Redland Bay, Scenic Rim, Somerset, South Burnett, Sunshine Coast, and Toowoomba.

People in the Gympie and North Burnett LGAs may also apply.

Insurers have received more than 15,000 claims related to extreme rainfall in Queensland and New South Wales in just seven days, with numbers to rise “significantly”.

The Insurance Council of Australia confirmed it had received 15,000 claims since February 21 from policy holders across both states, with the number of claims spiking by 33 per cent in just a single day.

Flooding in Fairfield, Brisbane. Picture: Tertius Pickard

The peak body representing the insurance sector had already declared the southeast Queensland flooding a “catastrophe”, meaning flood related claims will be moved to the top of the pile.

“It’s too early to estimate the insurance damage bill as many property owners remain in evacuation centres and flood waters continue to rise in many areas, or in others recede slowly,” ICA chief executive Andrew Hall said.

“The insurance industry expects the number of claims to rise significantly as policyholders return to their homes and businesses.

“Insurers are already assisting policyholders, and stand ready to provide on-the-ground assistance as soon as it is safe to do so.”

Mr Morrison confirmed the Defence helicopters had been dispatched to Lismore to assist with the rescue effort as the catastrophic flooding extends southward.

It come as Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner warned the Brisbane River was expected to peak at 3.5m during the high tide this evening.

He said the Brisbane River was due to peak at 4m during this morning’s high tide but the level has come in just under that mark.

“We have been through worse than this before, (but) we know that there are also many parts of Brisbane that weren’t affected in previous floods that have been affected,” Cr Schrinner said.

Extensive flooding in the Gympie region.

As a result, the Mud Army 2.0 will be activated and co-ordinated by Brisbane City Council.

Cr Schrinner said this disaster has been very different to 2011, in that “every type of flooding has happened at once” like overland flow, creek flooding and river flooding as opposed to solely river flooding.

He praised the work of dam authorities for the work they had done so far, saying it had been by the book and had not exacerbated the river flooding thus far.

The federal government has activated the disaster payments without first waiting for a request from the state government, working on the understanding Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her team have the immediate disaster to respond to currently.

Damage caused by floodwaters at Toowong. Picture: Josh Woning

The Disaster Recovery Payment is a lump-sum payment of $1,000 for eligible adults and $400 for each eligible child under the age of 16.

According to Services Australia, people can claim the payment if they’ve been “seriously affected as a direct result of the floods” such as their “home has been severely damaged or destroyed” or if they have been seriously injured.

Couples can both get a payment but through separate claims.

People may apply from 8am on Tuesday, online on Services Australia or by calling 1802266