Lismore

A Current Affair has visited the Northern Rivers community in northern New South Wales, 12 months after devastating floods destroyed almost everything.

"They were pretty tough (times) physically and mentally … Retiree Glen Lewis said a number of his neighbours have sold their properties and he himself is still living in a caravan at the front of his flood-wrecked home. She said it's now "good to be home" and to have a safe zone for her kids and animals. Yet he still considers himself one of the lucky ones because he had insurance, although he is waiting on a payout which he said was approved four months ago. "Absolutely everything in my shop is removable, even down to the hot water system," he said. It's a new cafe in Lismore after the business he managed pre-floods was unable to reopen. The damage that was done to the community is still evident across town. The floods caused destruction on a catastrophic scale and millions of dollars in stock was piled metres high on the street when it had to be thrown out. He said upstairs is still a work in progress. "It is a little sad when you pop your head out the window and see half the CBD is still empty," Lismore toy shop owner Carey Horner told A Current Affair reporter Pippa Bradshaw. The town of Lismore was inundated by floodwaters when the Wilsons River peaked at 14.4 metres in February 2022 and a year on, people say they're still struggling to recover. 'Half the CBD is still empty': Lismore community still struggling a year after floods destroyed town

A YEAR after record floodwaters devastated Lismore, the northern rivers town is rebuilding, even though it's happening at a frustratingly slow pace for many ...

The co-op is contributing $59 million to the project, with an additional $34.7 million and $11 million in federal and state government support. “It allows people to have two rooms of their property habitable, insulated and wherever possible with utilities connected so that people can have some semblance of living under their own roof instead of in tents or caravans,” Mr Pereira said. “There have been lots of initiatives that have sprung up to fill the void.” “As time has gone on there’s been a frustration about the pace of progress – whether it be the insurers, the government or the bureaucracy,” Mr Pereira said. Many thousands of people left Lismore after the February flood and a second flood that struck a few weeks later. “It stretched people and in most cases it brought out the best in people.”

Today is the anniversary of the 2022 flood that devastated the Northern Rivers and South East Queensland. People died, lost their homes in floods and ...

- 3pm – 7pm Art, craft and activities ‘The Well-Being Hub is a critical part of the Opening Our Heart commemorations. The Hub will run until Saturday, 4 March, and will consis of service providers, support services, activities and events that allow residents to ‘reflect on the year that was with support from professional services’. - 3.30pm – 7pm Film tent - 3.30pm – 7pm Flood recovery and support information People died, lost their homes in floods and landslides and for many that trauma continues as they wait for the government’s promised swift response to materialise.

Lismore business owner Adam Bailey says things in Lismore have been “very hard” following the catastrophic floods which hit the Northern Rivers region last ...

The Lismore flooding was the worst rainfall disaster in Australia. One year after the floods, there is still a lot to be done.

[8,000 people were forced into temporary accommodation last year](https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/one-year-on-lismore-still-seen-as-a-disaster-zone-20230224-p5cnez) and many are still there, stuck in the limbo of waiting for their insurance company or government staff to assess the damage to their property. On the ‘Resilient Lismore’ community Facebook page, many locals are expressing their frustrations about the slow pace of progress from the organisation while others say that they feel abandoned and forgotten about. The Prime Minister too has also paid tribute to the “resilience and spirit of the affected communities.” “The fact we have thousands of people living in temporary accommodation, they’re paying mortgages on houses that are unliveable,” he said. It’s an event that will “provide the community with the opportunity to reflect, commemorate, and heal” and it kicks off three weeks of community gatherings, including a music festival and a celebrity cricket match. The government [has been under constant criticism from the local communities](https://www.smh.com.au/environment/weather/lismore-residents-hung-out-to-dry-by-government-mistakes-20230227-p5cnv0.html) for mismanagement before, during, and after the disaster. NSW, unlike Queensland, did not announce its scheme to help buyback, raise, or retrofit the houses of affected residents until October last year — some eight months after the floods. And we’ll get through today and look towards the future and rebuilding,” Krieg told ABC News Breakfast. “Today’s going to be a very hard day for the community. [it’s one that we are likely to see again and again](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-13/what-is-a-probable-maximum-flood-lismore-peak/101523822) as the climate deteriorates and we remain unprepared for such disasters. This makeshift “tinnie army” has been credited for keeping the death toll mercifully low. Many had to climb into their attics to escape the waters.

Five lives were lost and more than 3000 homes were damaged or destroyed in the NSW Northern Rivers city on February 28 last year, when a month of record rain ...

“I think there’s lessons to be learned between the two jurisdictions,” he said. “The community heals as individuals, then the community heals and grows together,” he said. Mr Minns, in the Northern Rivers town of Tumbulgum ahead of the memorial, said Labor had kept a close eye on the rollout of comparable home buyback grants in Queensland, where the government had offered to buy more than 130 homes. “It will be a challenge and we will stand with those communities, as we have over the last 12 months,” he said on Monday. Mr Dalton, who is still waiting to find out if the government will move his home to higher ground as part of a $700 million recovery scheme, thought he would be further down the recovery track. Five lives were lost and more than 3000 homes were damaged or destroyed in the NSW Northern Rivers city on February 28 last year, when a month of record rain raised the Wilsons River to a record high of 14.4 metres.

A year on from the moment a wave of water swept 130 of his animals to their deaths in northern NSW, Paul Weir paused to reflect.

And like others in the area, he is still waiting for his insurance company to pay up. "To me that's the tragedy of the Lismore flood, the psychological damage it has done to people." "It's just loss, loss, loss, and then it's all the extra costs," he said.

'Crazy brave': the businesses taking on Australia's flood capital · Save · “We know there will be future floods. · Twenty-nine big floods – 9.9 metres or higher – ...

“But the other investors are quite clear they prefer not to be relying just on the weather gods. I’d love to buy two or three properties on the cheap. With three children, the couple lived in a house attached to La Baracca. The drop in downtown Lismore had been more substantial. “It would have been very easy to walk away,” he says. Lismore is at the mercy of its European history, which from 1842 became a place to cut down precious cedar timber and farm dairy and beef cattle. Half of its residents, most of its business, industry and civic buildings and cultural institutions are wedded to the historic river valley floor, 10 metres above sea level. Before the flood, Krieg and wife Julianne owned two cafes, La Baracca and Ristretto, downtown. The 2022 disaster – a record 14.37 metres – was two metres above the previous biggest recorded events in 1954 and 1974. The other half sits atop a plateau 130 metres to 170 metres above sea level, east of the central business district. Fifteen year 10 students will get apprenticeships to work on the rebuild. “Everyone is going to have issues because of climate change [across Australia].

Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg has honoured a group of locals dubbed the "tinny army" with medals a year after t...

The mayor said while all levels of government had been supportive, the town needed to see action soon. Krieg said his wife helped with the cleanup in the community and kept their family together while he tried to drum up support for the town. The A Current Affair host said Krieg had only been in the job two months when he was suddenly faced with the "huge responsibility" as the flood crisis struck. "Everyone chips in and does what they can," he said. "My wife is an absolute legend, we have three kids at home as well and she has been the true rock of our family," he said. "That is the tragedy of it," he said. The mayor said he was proud of his town but there was still have a long way to go to recover and many things the community still needs. "It's certainly been a day of reflection, that's for sure," the mayor told A Current Affair host Ally Langon, while revealing he shed a tear earlier in the day while reflecting on the disaster's anniversary. He wants to see the town recover because he doesn't plan on going anywhere else. "This is a housing critical crisis," Krieg said. Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg has honoured a group of locals dubbed the "tinny army" with medals a year after they jumped in their boats to help rescue strangers trapped by floodwaters. "It really is a community effort."

Live music stages will be located on Keen Street, Woodlark Street, Molesworth Street and Magellan Street. Local food businesses and mobile food vendors will ...

‘While we know it’s been a tough year for so many, the band and I are planning to bring the good times to Lismore on Sunday.’ Casey Barnes, winner of Album of the Year at this year’s Golden Guitar Awards is set to excite the Lismore community with his electrifying live show. Music from the Heart is a free event, no tickets are needed. Music from the Heart will be held on Saturday from 2pm to 8pm in the Lismore CBD. Come along with friends and family and support local businesses. Live music stages will be located on Keen Street, Woodlark Street, Molesworth Street and Magellan Street.

A community event of reflection and healing has been held to mark the first anniversary of the Lismore flood emergency that caused damage widespread and ...

A private ceremony has been held for Lismore's 'tinnie army' with each of them receiving a medal for their bravery. The local everyday heroes used their tin ...

Lismore has come a long way since disaster struck – but there's still a long way to go. Today's anniversary, stirring mixed emotions in the community – with ...