Luke Hartsuyker (Cowper, National Party, Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Hansard source

I commend the contribution by the member for Lindsay to this debate on the condolence motion on the natural disasters. From time to time, we experience significant events that become etched into our national memory. The flash flood that ripped through Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley on 10 January 2011 was such an event. The torrent was so unexpected in its arrival, so brutal in its power and so terrible in its destruction that we will remember it forever.

In the days that followed that terrible event, Australians watched the crisis unfold as floodwaters spread from the mountains down towards Brisbane. We watched as homes and businesses were flooded. We watched as businesses were literally washed down the river and smashed against bridges. We watched as a tug boat operator carefully guided huge chunks of debris past bridges and wharves to the relative safety of Moreton Bay. We will never forget those images.

Every Australian will remember the floods in a different way, but we all share deep and heartfelt sympathy for those who have lost loved ones, homes and businesses. And our sympathy extends to those Australians who have suffered through Cyclone Yasi and the Brisbane floods as well as the flooding in Central Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, and the bushfires in Western Australia.

In the face of these extraordinary natural disasters, Australians have demonstrated extraordinary resilience, courage and generosity. While the floodwaters roared through Toowoomba, brave emergency crews and bystanders plucked stranded motorists from their cars and saved people desperately clinging to trees and debris. Sadly, one hero, teenager Jordan Rice, made the ultimate sacrifice—losing his own life after insisting that his younger brother be rescued first. By the time his rescuers returned, Jordan was gone. Once the water began to recede, Australians responded by giving millions of dollars to the Premier’s flood appeal and by arriving in Brisbane by their thousands to help with the clean-up.

In my electorate, numerous local clubs, pubs, community groups, churches and individuals have held fundraisers and made substantial donations to the flood victims. Entertainers have donated their services to help at fundraising events. Local performing arts groups have held a variety show and raised thousands to support the flood appeal. Rotary clubs throughout the mid-North Coast region have been working to raise money and provide emergency assistance.

In Brisbane, thousands of Aussies arrived at volunteering centres. Some even drove from Sydney to help. Armed with shovels, mops and gum boots, they set off to spend a day helping total strangers clean mud and debris from their homes and businesses. Australians can truly be proud of the way they responded to the flood crisis.

Although spoken over 300 years ago, the words of French moralist Bruyere describe perfectly the response of the Australian public to the flood crisis when he said:

There exist some evils so terrible and some misfortunes so horrible that we dare not think of them, whilst their very aspect makes us shudder; but if they happen to fall on us, we find ourselves stronger than we imagined, we grapple with our ill luck, and behave better than we expected we should.

The floods in Toowoomba and Brisbane reminded us of the awesome power of nature, but they also reminded us that Australians can be counted on to help when disaster strikes.

In my own electorate of Cowper we did not escape unscathed from the flooding, with much of the Clarence Valley experiencing significant inundation. The towns of Ulmarra and Maclean, Minnie Water and Wooli were isolated for some days. We saw inundation in areas around these towns but, fortunately, the levee system held to prevent major damage to these centres. Unfortunately, many local farmers and business owners have experienced significant disruption and damage as a result of this flooding.

The Leader of the Opposition was kind enough to visit the region and he saw firsthand the impact that these floods had on local businesses and particularly on primary producers in the area. In particular, we saw significant destruction of the local sugarcane crop, with a loss of new plantings and young crops, which will certainly manifest itself in a very low yield in around 2012, when the crop for that year should be down by as much as 50 per cent. Our local fishing industry suffered badly. Having suffered difficulties in recent years, these latest floods set the industry back further. Local dairy farmers also suffered the impact of this local disaster.

It is worth noting that almost every corner of my electorate has been affected by flooding at some stage in the past two years—from the Macleay valley in the south through the Nambucca and Bellinger valleys, Coffs Harbour, the Orara Valley and of course the Clarence valley. Natural disasters have become an expected part of life on the mid-North Coast. But, despite the fact that we expect floods to come, the damage is never easy to repair and the lost wages and income are gone forever.

One aspect of natural disasters that is often overlooked is the impact of infrastructure damage on local councils. Local councils are responsible for most of the roads, bridges, footpaths, sewerage systems, drainage and other local facilities. At the best of times, councils struggle to pay for the maintenance and repair of these facilities. When natural disasters strike, finding the money to pay for reconstruction and repairs is almost impossible. Even with Commonwealth and state government assistance, some important local infrastructure simply cannot be properly repaired within a reasonable time frame, if at all. Damaged in the devastating floods in 2009 in my electorate, some rural bridges and roads have only just been reconstructed, and at least one important regional road link is not yet fully repaired. These local pieces of infrastructure are vital to regional communities, and the reconstruction task force in Queensland must ensure that local councils have sufficient resources to quickly repair and rebuild the roads, bridges and other facilities damaged by the floods.

The scale of the natural disasters that we have experienced in the past few months is unprecedented. Seventy-five per cent of Queensland is a declared natural disaster area. Much of northern New South Wales has been declared a natural disaster area, plus areas of western New South Wales that perhaps will not see flood peaks until late March. Victoria has suffered through widespread floods. Western Australia, as I have said, is struggling with bushfires.

In the face of these daunting challenges, Australians have shown the world that we will not be defeated. No matter what nature throws at us, we will rebuild. We will help our mates through tough times. We will come back bigger and stronger than ever. On behalf of my electorate, I would like to make it clear to the people of Queensland, Western Australia, Victoria and New South Wales that we feel your pain, we will support you through these most difficult times and we will be there to help in the future.

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