TRANSCRIPT
With North Queensland's bad weather receding following ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper, Queenslanders have been expecting additional financial support from federal government.
A one-off payment of AU$1,000 per eligible adult and AU$400 per eligible child who suffered a significant loss as a result of the floods has already been made available through the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment.
In addition, the Disaster Recovery Allowance provides up to 13 weeks of federal income support to assist eligible employees or sole traders impacted.
During a visit to Cairns on Friday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced new measures.
“We will provide $25 million for primary producers who have suffered as a result of the flood events, $25 million for a separate package for small business and not for profits to provide them with that support, $1 dollars for each of the nine local government areas just as a top up payment because of the additional costs that we'll be dealing with,
and an additional $5 million that came out of a request ugiven to the premier when he met with tourism operators.”
The latest damage assessment update released on Friday [[DEC 22]] indicates that 134 homes have suffered severe damage, more than 580 moderate damage and 13 homes have been completely destroyed.
Resident Daniel Robinson says it all happened fast.
“I was sitting at the backyard, I saw the waters come up to the fence and I was like, that's a bit odd, and then 20 minutes later though, three inches deep through the yard and then I went to the kids and asked, pack your bags we are getting out, but by the time they pack their bags it was a raging torrent down the street.”
In Kowanyama, around 35 communities are isolated and in remote Cape York, preparations are being made for major flooding over the weekend.
The Wujal Wujal region has evacuated almost 300 residents, after being flooded in the wake of ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper.
Some locals decided to stay, even though they have no power or sewerage system
Mr. Albanese says that people with insurance who have been affected by the floods should seek help, even if they are not sure they qualify.
“People who are insured should be putting in their claims, and I say to insurance companies, they should be honoring those claims which are legitimate being put forward. We will keep vigilant on those issues”
The Queensland state government has also allocated AUS$2 million for some of the businesses to access that were affected by the floods, as food recovery plans in Cairns get underway.
Queensland's Premier, Steven Miles, says some areas need to be prioritised.
“We will continue to look to what the region needs throughout this recovery and make sure that we're delivering it. But I really think that this signals should signal to the Far North Queensland community that we will continue to listen and we will continue to act quickly.”
The government is also concerned that the situation in parts of Queensland will drive away year-end tourism.
More than 27 million domestic and international overnight visitors came to Queensland last year.
Queensland's tourism sector is a $22 billion industry for the state.
Assistant Minister for Tourism Industry Development, Michael Healy, urges people to visit the sunshine state.
“Some tourism businesses have been impacted, some haven't; we are still a world class destination. Please come and the best way to help some some people who are going to have a very difficult Christmas -the best way to help us come up and have a holiday.”
