‘I was scared for our lives’: Mum, daughter’s flood terror
A Sunshine Coast woman has described the horrible sound of loud water gushing through her home saying she feared for the life of herself and her daughter, while local businesses have been hit by millions in total damage.
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A Sunshine Coast woman has described the horrible sound of loud water gushing through her home saying she feared for the life of herself and her daughter, while local businesses have been hit by millions in total damage.
The floods have cost some businesses up to $200k, with one owner saying they ‘could not afford’ insurance and another revealing his retirement plans are in disarray.
Peter Rosendale, 78, and his beloved wife Jeannie said they had lost everything at Nambour Print and Copy, which they have owned for more than 20 years.
Their entire livelihood is gone with no insurance after they say, along with other businesses, there was absolutely “no warning”.
On Tuesday, the couple along with some helpers were trying to clean up the mess left behind by the floodwater.
Mr Rosendale said they would have easily lost more $200k worth of business equipment inside the store.
“We were told it had fizzled out so on Sunday we were quite relaxed,” he said.
“There was just under a metre of water that went through the business building. But it didn’t just go through, it churned through. It’s like a big washing machine.
“It’s the worst we’ve seen here in 20 years.
“We’ve lost everything.
“I was hoping to retire this year but now I don’t know what we’re going to do.”
When the floodwater went down, Mr Rosendale said they struggled to even open the front door of their business.
“It’s just a mess,” he said.
“We want to talk to council and say ‘hey this happens regularly here’ and we couldn’t get flood insurance because of the creek at the back so it should be pulled down and made into green space or a park.
“Council didn’t give us enough warning on Sunday night.”
Jetts Nambour, on Short St, was another local business hit by Monday’s flash flooding.
Owners Jill Bingham and Warren White have lost nearly everything.
Ms Bingham said they took over the local gym four years ago and renovated it.
They had previously owned gyms at Peregian and Coolum Beach.
“Everything was very new,” she said.
“It came up about half a metre inside … from the back and the front of the gym.
“It all happened early Monday morning around 4am.
“We got a message and photo from a member who was here.
“There was nothing we could have done. We prepared the best we could and kept an eye on it via the cameras here.”
Ms Bingham said although it was unexpected she didn’t blame the council.
“It’s no one’s fault, it’s just very unfortunate,” she said.
She said there would have been at $200k worth of damage but probably a lot more.
They will also have to remain shut for more than four weeks to clean and rebuild, which amounts to even more money down the drain.
The couple did not have flood insurance.
“All of the cardio equipment was destroyed,” she said.
“The floors and the walls and the computers too. The weights and some of the machines survived.
“We’re not insured because we just couldn’t afford it.”
Although devastated, Ms Bingham said the crew were trying to remain positive on Tuesday afternoon.
“If you don’t laugh you cry,” she said.
“Obviously we’re gutted. It’s just us and another staff member. We’re a small business.
“But we’re going to just keep tracking on, keep our heads up, and do the best we can.”
Nambour homeowner tells of flood terror
A homeowner has also recounted the terrifying moments water started to rapidly rise around her during Monday morning’s intense flash flooding that some locals compared to the 1983 floods.
Doreen Pratt and her 16-year-old daughter Eomme Pratt have lived on Florence St for years.
The school cleaner said it was “terrifying”.
She was woken up Monday morning about 2am to the loud whooshing sound of the rising floodwater.
Ms Pratt said her entire garage was under water and that it was lapping at the front steps of her elevated home by the time she woke up.
“It was crazy and scary,” she said.
“We didn’t think it was going to hit like that here. We thought the worst of it was over.”
Thankfully the single mother had moved her car to higher ground near the Nambour Hospital on Sunday afternoon.
“When I opened the window and looked down I was like ‘oh my god’,” she said of Monday morning’s flooding.
“It came up so fast it was scary. It was so loud too, the water. I was scared for me and my daughter.
“I’d never seen flooding like this before.”
Ms Pratt had furniture and family belongings stored downstairs in the garage, which was now filled with mud.
The muddy smell was unmistakeable as the cleaner and teenager tried to clean it up before the morning sun hit on Tuesday.
She said the damage would have been between $20k to $50k worth.
Like many Nambour locals and businesses, they did not have flood insurance.
Ms Pratt said they waited it out for an hour or so before heading to higher ground early Monday morning.
“I was scared for our lives … we moved all of our valuable belongings as high up in the house as we could and then left for the hospital,” she said.
“I don’t know how long it will take to clean up.
“I don’t know what will happen next for us.”
On Tuesday morning there were more than 100 volunteers gathered at the Nambour Bowls Club, all working tirelessly to help clean up the flood damage.
Nambour Bowls Club chairman Graham Morton said he’d only ever seen it flood like this once before.
“Back in 1983 it was close to two metres high … this time there would have been about a metre and half of water inside the club,” he said.
“Hopefully we never break that.
“It’s been great to see all of the community support with the clean up.”
Mr Morton said they were “sort of prepared”.
“We thought the worst of it was over but we still got some sandbags,” he said.
“The front door was smashed open by the water but I think the water must have picked something up too.”
Mr Morton said they didn’t have flood insurance but with the help of many local volunteers and neighbouring bowls clubs he hoped they would have the mess cleaned up soon.
The Nambour Crushers Rugby League Club and field was entirely submerged by floodwater on Monday.
Club secretary Tarsh Gardner said in her 10 years of volunteering she’d never seen anything like it.
“It’s the worst it’s ever flooded in Nambour,” she said.
“It was all through the clubhouse.
“This morning (Tuesday) there was just mud everywhere.
“The sewerage is gone and we’ve lost all of the merchandise.”
The club was supposed to host the first games of the season this coming Friday night.
However now they’re thinking it could take weeks to be cleaned up enough.
Thankfully the football club had flood insurance.
Meanwhile, Sunshine Coast Mayor Rosanna Natoli said the upcoming forecast was “great news”.
“We have great news from the BOM that the forecast for the Sunshine Coast is only for light showers ahead,” she said.
“As a result, the Sunshine Coast Local Disaster Management group has moved to stand down status.
“That means all services and requests for help will be dealt with, just not in that stand up state. We are now moving to recovery.
“Yesterday we had 17 swift water rescues and we are very pleased to announce that we have had no injuries and no loss of life. This is an extraordinary result and thanks in part to the community heeding our warnings.”
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