First Qld homes sold under flood buy-back scheme

A Goodna family are among the first to sell their property back to the government after it was flooded earlier this year, and they could not be more happy with the process. Here’s why.

Flooding in Goodna earlier this year. Picture: Liam Kidston

One of the first homeowners to take up the buy-back scheme was Chris and Ronnella Onyeajum, with the sale of their Enid St, Goodna, house settling on November 14.

At the time of the February/March floods, the house was rented by a tenant, who lost everything.

“We lived there for about two years and knew it had flooded in 2011 but you think it won’t happen again,” Mr Onyeajum said.

“That was a nightmare (the 2022 floods) with water coming halfway up the second storey of the house.”

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Chris and Ronnella Onyeajum accepted an offer from the government to buy back their Gooda property after it was flooded earlier this year. Pic Lyndon Mechielsen/Courier Mail

The couple, who have eight children and 10 grandchildren, said they were in limbo in terms of what to do after the floods, and had started some renovations, but the announcement of the buy back scheme had been a gamechanger for their family.

Enid St, Goodna, after the floods. Pic: Cr Paul Tully

Mr Onyeajum praised the scheme, and all of those involved, saying the process had been fair.

“The people they (the RCA) called into do the assessment, they were incredible, and showed real empathy,” he said.

“We would have had a lot of work to do just to make it liveable and with construction costs at a premium, that would have been impossible.

“They looked at what was there before and after the floods and gave us a reasonable offer.”

Chris and Ronnella Onyeajum's Enid St, Goodna, house was severely flooded earlier this year

But for Mr Onyeajum, the biggest relief was knowing that they, or any future tenants, would not have to go through the trauma of another flood.

He said he hoped to see more people take up the scheme and low-lying areas that are prone to flooding declared uninhabitable.

“This was a no-brainer for my family,” he said.

Chris and Ronnella Onyeajum's Enid St, Goodna, house was severely flooded earlier this year

Mud and water flowed through the top floor of the house