Dandenong Ranges storm damage: Bushfire season looms as Yarra Ranges seeks urgent help

An urgent plea from the storm ravaged Yarra Ranges has been made ahead of its mammoth cleanup task before bushfire season.

Storm damage in Kalorama. Picture: Jason Edwards

There has been no word on whether the military troops will be sent in to help clean-up the storm-affected Dandenong Ranges.

An urgent appeal has been made by Yarra Ranges Council, to all levels of government, weeks after storms devastated the Dandenong Ranges on June 9.

Councillors passed an urgent notice of motion calling for State and Federal help as there is still a huge amount of clean-up needed before the looming bushfire season.

Cr Cathrine Burnett-Wake, who launched the plight, said the call for clean-up funding and recovery assistance was urgent.

The council will write to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience state Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie, and Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and Police and Emergency Services state Labor MP Lisa Neville explaining the magnitude of the storm damage and help required.

Cr Burnett-Wake said the council would also be requesting a review of the eligibility criteria for residents to access financial assistance through the $55.5 million in joint Federal and State Bushfire Recovery Victoria funding, which had strict conditions.

As it stands only residents or businesses who had assets damaged are eligible, but most of these have been covered by insurance claims.

Cr Burnett-Wake said it was the resident’s who had trees fall, where nothing was damaged, but couldn’t afford to clean up their properties that needed urgent help before the fire season.

She said these people had fallen through the cracks.

Cr Burnett-Wake told Leader she understood only about 300 people had applied for financial assistance through the scheme so far.

And while the ADF helped during the extensive power outage with generators, there had been no word from the State Government on if there would be boots on the ground to help with the physical clean-up effort.

She said the council put a request in two weeks ago but had not received a positive response to date.

Cr Burnett-Wake said the council recognised the mammoth task it had before it with the volume of fallen trees and debris that needed to be cleared before the next fire season.

“This is the real risk here. The real threat,” she said.

“For the last four weeks we have had numerous State Government ministers along with high-ranking public officials come and see first-hand how bad the situation is.”

She said while officials said they would continue to work with the council and community to identify further programs and support, there was no time frames or idea on what the support programs would look like.

“Feedback from community members to me is they feel abandoned. Some seek to lay blame, others simply despair,” she said.

“It’s simply unethical to neglect the Yarra Ranges in a time of urgent need, especially as the bushfire season approaches,” she said.

Premier Andrews office has been contacted for comment.

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