Ipswich does it tough but spirits high

THE people of Ipswich reckon they're lucky.

THE people of Ipswich reckon they're lucky. They've spent the past week pumping sludge from their living rooms, tossing out loved possessions and wondering if their homes can be rebuilt, but the 170,000 residents of the city, 35km east of Brisbane, aren't feeling sorry for themselves.

Some media reports suggested wealthier Brisbane suburbs got most of the assistance from authorities in the early stages of the clean-up, but that is news to Ipswich residents.

At Goodna, on the eastern fringe of the city, Sharon and John Hughes -- they're separated, but live next door to each other -- had a team of about 25 volunteers clearing debris from the two properties yesterday.

"We've had so many volunteers along here in the past few days we had to turn people away," Ms Hughes said.

"It's funny to consider yourself lucky when your house has just been destroyed, but that's how I feel. My family is still alive."

But she was sad to have lost letters that her mother-in-law, Mabel Hughes, received from the prime minister and the Queen on her 100th birthday. "Those letters were really special to the family."

Coral Smith, whose three-bedroom fibro house in East Ipswich was swamped last Wednesday, lost most of her possessions, but the 50-something factory worker -- who could not afford to insure her home -- believes there's no point complaining.

"What can you do? The flood happened, it did a lot of damage, but you've just got to get on with things," she said. "Others are worse off than us. We're lucky, we didn't lose any lives around here."

In nearby Selwyn Street, nurse Maree Doyle agreed. She bought a four-bedroom house in North Booval for her adult son 12 months ago. The floodwaters tore through the property, even into the gutters.

Everything inside was ruined, as shown by the 4m-high rubbish pile on her front lawn yesterday.

"We'll rebuild, for sure," Ms Doyle said as her sister Kathy and brother-in-law Ian helped with the clean-up.

"I haven't really had time to be angry, I've been so busy. The only time I got a tear in my eye was when a stranger came over with a plate of cup cakes. Everyone's been so generous."

Peter Pozzias and his wife Robyn Smith-Pozzias watched the Bremer River rise towards their East Ipswich home last week, eventually engulfing the place.

"Everyone is doing it tough, but when you hear other people's stories, and they're worse than your own, it just puts it all in perspective," Mr Pozzias said.

Ipswich Mayor Paul Pisasale said the floods could act as a new beginning for the region.

"The whole area is crawling back to life, and the support we've been getting from people from all over Australia has been fantastic," he said.

"Nothing will set Ipswich back. We're flying -- a little fragile, sure, but everyone's confidence is growing by the day."

Mr Pisasale yesterday launched the Ipswich appeal fund, which he stressed was not meant to siphon money away from the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal, which last night passed $100 million.