‘Taken everything’: Storm residents’ new nightmare in ‘war zone’

Lynnette Lynch bunkered down in her home during last week’s devastating storms, which she said sounded like a “row of freight trains”. Never did she think that would just be the beginning.

The Gold Coast suburb of Wongawallan resembles a war zone as residents return to properties obliterated by severe storms and flooding.

The week-long disaster wreaked havoc on powerlines, with locals navigating through fallen trees and debris to see what is left of their homes.

Lynnette Lynch returned to what she once called her “paradise lost”, a gorgeous dual property situated along the Tamborine Creek.

Wongawallan resident Lynnette Lynch has had her little piece of “paradise lost” after the Christmas Day storms and the flooding that followed. Picture: Adam Head

Today it is barely recognisable, after floods washed away her driveway, leaving behind gaping concrete holes.

Torrents destroyed the foundations of her sheds and garages, and large rocks that once covered the creek bed collected on her lawn.

The water was so strong that a car, tractor, fence panels and contents from inside steel sheds were strewn across the property.

A car, tractor, fence panels and contents from inside steel sheds were strewn across the property when Lynette Lynch returned. Picture: Adam Head

Inside, a thick sludge covered the floors of her once award-winning home, a black line across the walls resembling the knee-high flood waters that seeped in.

Ms Lynch was home when the Christmas Day storms hit, but she said coming home to her flood-ridden property was a disaster scene.

Inside Lynnette Lynch’s home. Picture: Adam Head

“I think I’ve gotten to stage where I’m a bit numb,” she said.

“Emotionally I’m drained, physically I’m exhausted, and I’m just sad.

“There’s so much more damage now than just the trees down from the storm.

“The water has affected everything, every crevice.”

Ms Lynch bunkered down in her home during the storms, which she said sounded like a “row of freight trains,” before escaping with her pets, four orphaned kittens and a Great Dane.

A tractor was among objects strewn across the property following the storms and flooding. Picture: Adam Head

She made sure to check on her home until access was cut by floodwaters.

“Our neighbours said the water was running so fast they couldn’t even cross the road to check on us,” she said.

“Neighbours that have lived here for 50-odd years and they’d never seen anything like this, at all.”

Few items could be salvaged after flooding hit the storm-damaged property. Picture: Adam Head

On Tuesday, Ms Lynch returned to assess the flood damage, trudging through the mud and rocks barefoot, salvaging the few items she could.

Asked where she would go from here, she said, “honestly, I don’t know.”

Like many others in the Upper Coomera and Wongawallan area, she will have to wait for debris to be cleared for a damage assessment to be done on her home.

“I thought the job was massive when it was just the trees, but now I have no idea,” she said.

“After the storm, the fence was still here so the water has just taken absolutely everything.”

Outside Lynette Lynch’s home. Picture: Adam Head