The good Samaritan working two full time jobs to fund a disaster response service

Samantha Stenberg realised there were gaping holes in disaster response that she could fill – even if it means putting herself in harm's way.

When a work trip to Mackay was cut short due to an impending cyclone, Samantha Stenberg knew she had to act.

Instead of fleeing, she stayed to help affected friends and family. It was then the Gold Coast contractor quickly realised there were gaps in the emergency response she could fill.

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Deciding to “wing it”, Ms Stenberg used her background in emergency management to establish a disaster response program providing on-the-ground support in the immediate aftermath of the storm.

Ms Stenberg poses with the ute used in multiple rescue efforts. Picture: Glenn Hampson

In doing do, the National Disaster Management Services (NDMS) was born, a now thriving not-for-profit providing support for disaster-hit communities, including search and rescue, mental health counselling and logistics management.

Recently, Ms Stenberg's team was on the ground co-ordinating search-and-rescue efforts in the Northern Rivers floods.

Her work has earned her a nomination in the 2022 Gold Coast Bulletin Women of the Year, for the Angels Among Us category.

“A lot of NGOs won’t put their volunteers in an area that’s been hit by a natural disaster because it’s really high risk,” Ms Stenberg said.

“If we have warnings that there’s a high likelihood of a natural disaster, we’ll try and deploy before it hits, so we can see what gets damaged, do an immediate risk assessment and pass that information to the outside world.

“We know straight away the donations needed, what the supply issues will be … and then I can put out a phone call to the relevant NGOs.”

Equipped and ready to get into the thick of things. Picture: Glenn Hampson

Ms Stenberg said getting basic food, water and shelter were the three vital pillars of disaster response.

“A bed’s great but not needed in the first week,” she said.

“You can’t just send a whole heap of donations to the community because there won’t be any storage or infrastructure.”

Ms Stenberg works two full-time jobs to fund the NDMS, running both a safety training and consultancy business.

All associated costs such as rescue boats, life jackets, hiking equipment and basic medical supplies are funded privately, with all donations going straight to communities in need.

“The NDMS only won its first grant in April this year, which was $10,000 and that went straight to a mould treatment and prevention program,” she said.

“Companies were charging $300-500 per home for that service in flood-affected areas, but we were able to provide that free of charge.”

Ms Stenberg works two full-time jobs to fund the NDMS, with all donations going back to communities in need. Picture: Glenn Hampson

Ms Stenberg estimated the NDMS had provided more than $15m of labour services in its five-year history, and said grassroots NGOs needed more say in disaster policy.

“Disasters aren’t going to disappear, so we have to keep an open mind and have ongoing conversations about how we can help more,” she said.

“It’s not about responding – it’s being proactive before things happen.”

Nominations for the Gold Coast Bulletin Women of the Year are open now.