Joint Media Release issued today from the Ministers Office regarding Disaster Assistance available in response to Severe Weather and Flooding in NSW.

SENATOR THE HON BRIDGET MCKENZIE

MINISTER FOR EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND NATIONAL RECOVERY AND RESILIENCE

THE HON STEPH COOKE MP

NEW SOUTH WALES MINISTER FOR EMERGENCY SERVICES AND RESILIENCE

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE 

1 March 2022

DISASTER ASSISTANCE AVAILABLE IN RESPONSE TO SEVERE WEATHER AND FLOODING IN NSW

Disaster assistance is now available in 17 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in response to severe storms and flooding, which began on 22 February 2022 and continues to impact large areas of northern
New South Wales.

The LGAs are Armidale, Ballina, Bellingen, Byron, Clarence Valley, Coffs Harbour, Glen Innes Severn, Hornsby, Kempsey, Kyogle, Lismore, Nambucca, Port Macquarie/Hastings, Richmond, Tenterfield, The Hills and Tweed.

Assistance is being provided through the jointly funded Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).

Minister for Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience, Senator the Hon Bridget McKenzie, said the flooding has led to a large number of evacuations in northern New South Wales, with major flood operations still ongoing.

“We have seen the distressing images coming out of the northern areas of the State, particularly around Lismore, where flooding has had a devastating impact on the local community,” Minister McKenzie said.

“There will be some very tough days, weeks and months ahead for thousands of people in New South Wales and the clean-up operation and recovery will take time.

“The Federal and NSW governments will continue to work closely to ensure affected communities receive the support they need to get back on their feet as soon as possible.”

New South Wales Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience, Steph Cooke, said the danger is far from over for communities across northern New South Wales.

“Many thousands of people continue to face the threat of flooding and saving lives is our key priority for the next few days,” Ms Cooke said.

“But recovery is not a process that starts when the emergency is over. The provision of this assistance will ensure we can get people and towns back to normal as quickly as possible when the waters start to recede.”

Assistance available under the DRFA may include:

• Help for eligible people whose homes or belongings have been damaged (eligibility criteria apply);

• Support for affected local councils to help with the costs of cleaning up and restoring damaged essential public assets;

• Concessional interest rate loans for small businesses, primary producers and non-profit organisations; and

• Freight subsidies for primary producers.

For information on personal hardship and distress assistance, contact Service NSW on 13 77 88.

To apply for a concessional loan or primary producer grant, contact the NSW Rural Assistance Authority on 1800 678 593 or visit www.raa.nsw.gov.au.