A damning report from the major flood inquiry has exposed a series of gross failures by the Labor Government, the Nationals’ Member for Northern Victoria Gaelle Broad said today.
Ms Broad was a member of the committee that conducted the inquiry and heard first-hand the many distressing stories of people affected by the 2022 floods.
Ms Broad said the evidence was harrowing and reflected the widespread trauma of the floods.
“Precious lives were lost, and we heard from elderly residents who woke up to find water coming into their bedrooms,” she said.
“Farmers were flooded when water storages were released without warning, and crops and livestock were lost.
“Inaccurate flood warnings caused widespread confusion. Roads and bridges were torn apart, and councils are still waiting for funds to repair them.
“Residents were sleeping on wet mattresses. Homes were gutted, and some residents have waited over 12 months for insurance claims to be resolved.
“We were told emergency volunteers had been waiting up to six years to do training courses.
“Critical infrastructure such as levees, dams and culverts were inadequate and there was a severe shortage of sandbags.
“Online grants were made available in areas with no internet access, and businesses destroyed by floods were overwhelmed by the paperwork required to prove it.
“It was clear from the stories we heard that Victoria was not well equipped to respond to a flood of this scale, and there is much work that still needs to be done to prepare us for the future.”
Ms Broad said the report highlighted the need to:
- Help communities be better prepared to manage a crisis;
- Better manage and maintain flood mitigation including levees, dams and culverts;
- Improve early warning systems;
- Stop building inappropriate developments in flood plains; and
- Ensure that infrastructure is built back better.
“The Labor State Government needs to act on these recommendations, to prevent a repeat of 2022.”
The report was formally tabled in Parliament on July 30. The Government has six months to respond. The report is available on the Parliament’s website Reports (parliament.vic.gov.au)
Media Contact: Linda Barrow 0484 303 764 linda.barrow@parliament.vic.gov.au
