The most flooded postcode in Australia was left off a priority list to better prepare it for natural disasters, as people are rescued from rooftops in the town in its worst-ever flood.
Lismore was left off a list of local government areas prioritised to receive Commonwealth money to help with flood preparedness and resilience.
The town of about 45,000 people in the northern rivers region of NSW is undergoing one of its worst flood disasters to date after more than 700mm of rain fell in the area on Sunday and Monday.
Wilsons River running through Lismore peaked at 14.1m on Monday, above the peaks of around 12m during the town’s famous 1954 and 1974 floods, and when rain from Cyclone Debbie inundated the town In 2017.
Lismore in northern NSW is the most flooded postcode in Australia yet didn’t make a priority list to receive credit towards Commonwealth funding for disaster resilience
Locals and emergency services take to small boats to help evacuate people in Lismore on Monday
One local said Lismore had experienced 130 floods in 150 years of official flood records
Applications for grants of up to $10million under the Preparing Australian Communities opened in December, with results to be announced in March.
The program is run by Australia’s National Recovery and Resilience Agency (NRRA) who announced a list of priority LGAs assessed as having ‘high exposure to bushfire, tropical cyclone or flood’ which would receive extra points towards receiving one of the grants.
Lismore was not on the list, as the ABC reported in November, despite neighbouring LGAs of Byron, Ballina and Clarence Valley appearing as priorities at risk of flood.
Resident Richard Trevan from Lismore Citizens Flood Review said at the time the decision was ‘crazy’.
‘We’ve had 130 floods in 150 years of official flood records, which means something in the order of a flood about every 14 months,’ he said.
Shane Stone, the Director General of the NRRA subsequently visited Lismore to meet with Mr Trevan’s group.
‘There are other funds that they can tap into,’ Mr Stone said when asked why Lismore was not considered a priority LGA.
‘Projects will be funded based on merit, so a local government area that isn’t listed as a priority location is still eligible to receive a share of the $150 million available under this round, if they put forward a strong application that meets all the criteria,’ he said.
The latest flood in the town saw harrowing scenes of people trapped on the roofs of their houses and desperate social media calls for assistance.
Around 1000 rescues were conducted in the northern rivers area, with a number of residents believed to still be missing.
Residents inspect the damage as water from the Wilsons River begins to recede after peaking at 14.4metres
A natural disaster has now been declared in Lismore, making affected communities and individuals eligible for further range of special assistance measures
Around 1000 rescues were conducted in the northern rivers area, with a number of residents believed to still be missing. Pictured: Debris seen in Leycester St, Lismore
On Monday Lismore residents and others in northern NSW became eligible for the one-off disaster relief payment Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Sunday to compensate Queenslanders affected by flooding the weekend deluge.
The Disaster Recovery Payment of $1,000 per adult and $400 per child is paid directly into bank accounts for those who have suffered a significant loss, including a severely damaged or destroyed home or serious injury.
A natural disaster has now been declared in Lismore, making affected communities and individuals eligible for further range of special assistance measures from the state body tasked with disaster management and recovery, Resilience NSW.
Eight people have now died in the deadly ‘rain bomb’ weather event across Queensland and northern NSW.
Lismore has attempted numerous efforts at mitigating floods in the town over the years.
In 1999 a government-funded scheme to protect the CBD and South Lismore from a 1-in-10-year flood event via levees was approved.
Lismore has attempted numerous efforts at mitigating floods in the town over the years
The proposal was designed to prevent smaller floods would entering the town’s CBD and given residents and businesses more time to evacuate in larger floods.
But the levee was unable to contain the March 2017 flood, with extensive damage caused to the town.
The local council then launched a Flood Ready project to respond to natural disasters in concert with emergency services, local agencies and community groups.
The NRRA said it could not comment on applications while the assessment process is underway when contacted by Daily Mail Australia.
