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Author Topic: Australian Floods  (Read 2502 times)

Peter Fitness

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Australian Floods
« on: April 01, 2017, 01:20:38 am »

The east coast of Australia, in particular north Queensland, was devastated by Cyclone Debbie. An enormous amount of damage was caused by this very nasty storm, especially in the Whitsunday Islands and the towns of Airlie Beach, Bowen and other centres.


After Debbie crossed the coast it degenerated into a deep tropical depression, the effects of which were felt right down the east coast as far as Sydney. We have been impacted by torrential rain causing major flooding in the Lismore area of north eastern NSW. We also had very heavy rain prior to the cyclone forming which, together with the cyclonic rain has resulted in us having 833 mm since 24th February. 391 mm of this fell in just over 24 hours at our farm, while other areas had even more. While we are well above flood height we are cut off, and will remain so for some days yet, until the river recedes. Fortunately, unlike some, we still have power as well as plenty of essential supplies, so we are fine.


The Lismore CBD has been flooded for the first time since a levee was built around 2001, prior to that flooding was a fairly common occurrence. This time, the river overtopped the levee by about a metre, causing the whole Lismore basin to be inundated, catching many business owners unawares. People had become complacent, believing they were safe behind the levee, not realising that once water spilled over, the town would flood quickly. I have experienced many floods in my time, two much bigger than the current one, and always said to anyone who would listen that one day the water would exceed the levee, and the town would be in trouble. Fortunately, a large proportion of the residential areas are on high ground and were unaffected, it's the businesses which have suffered.


I've attached a few photos, including one which graphically illustrates the water pouring into town, having come over the levee.


Peter.
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RAAArtyGunner

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #1 on: April 01, 2017, 06:16:58 am »

Sad but true.

Stopped raining in Brisbane two days ago, sun now shining but flooding of low lying areas continues.

Mainly business' in low lying areas such as IKEA store in Logan City under water today.

Need a few days to pass, before it all settles down.

There is always irony, such as the comment from Brisbane water supplier, prior to Cyclone Debbie making landfall, that dams were low (70%????) and water restrictions were being considered.
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tigertiger

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #2 on: April 01, 2017, 07:17:25 am »

All sorts are getting washed up.
I was a little surprised to see this photo of a bull shark that turned up near Ayr.
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ballastanksian

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #3 on: April 01, 2017, 10:02:00 pm »

I know they are insured for such things, but it always saddens me to see the shop owner's hard work in building up business and presenting their stock ruined so. I especially hate to see books spoilt even if some maybe a bit derivitive.

I hope they get back to business soon and that few people if any were hurt.
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RAAArtyGunner

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #4 on: April 01, 2017, 10:34:00 pm »

Now there is the rub.

At last floods most insurance companies refused to pay up as it was not a flood by their definition, the fine print we don't pay if....
Long story short, the Federal and State governments got involved and were going to legislate the definition of a 'flood'.

Hopefully it won't happen again as premiums went through the roof for all who property in designated flood prone areas whether flooded previously or otherwise.

You have to admire the ethics of the insurance industry  >>:-( >>:-( <*< <*<
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BrianB6

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #5 on: April 01, 2017, 10:47:17 pm »


I hope they get back to business soon and that few people if any were hurt.
[/quote

3 known dead so far and a possible 4th.   Lots of flood rescues.   Some areas are to dangerous for emergency services to get too.   Service personnel are helping.
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Martin (Admin)

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #6 on: April 01, 2017, 11:13:14 pm »


All the best Peter.... Mayhem's own on-the-spot concordant!   :-))
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ballastanksian

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #7 on: April 01, 2017, 11:19:25 pm »

Now there is the rub.

At last floods most insurance companies refused to pay up as it was not a flood by their definition, the fine print we don't pay if....
Long storey short, the Federal and State governments got involved and were going to legislate the definition of a 'flood'.

Hopefully it won't happen again as premiums went through the roof for all who property in designated flood prone areas whether flooded previously or otherwise.

You have to admire the ethics of the insurance industry  >>:-( >>:-( <*< <*<

And also where they designate a flood risk area! My first flat was over a mile from the sea, up a slope and thousands of houses and flats would have flooded before our street even got damp, but only one insurer would touch us.

Bloomin insurers, they treat you like a cash cow and then when you have a legitimate claim they say there was a vowel in the month and won't pay out. Little tykes  >>:-( Those poor people in Australia.
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derekwarner

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #8 on: April 01, 2017, 11:40:31 pm »

Yes...insurance by Post Code  <*<....a family friend lives some 10 km from me and the suburb has a creek running from the hills to the sea

Our local Wollongong City Council has listed this Suburb as flood prone........The Insurance Council of NSW has adopted the City Councils flood mitigation plan and has increased home insurance policy costs by 350%

Our friends home is 1/2 way up the mountain at an elevation of 150 m above sea level  %%

Not only do these faceless persons have poor business ethics, they also display an absence of logic or brain power  :o

Derek
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Derek Warner

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Peter Fitness

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #9 on: April 02, 2017, 12:06:03 am »

The irony of the levee is that it was built to keep relatively minor, or "nuisance" floods out of the CBD, but once the river drops below the levee, it also keeps water in. A system of flood gates and powerful pumps was installed so they should help remove the water fairly quickly.


Our family had several butcher shops in the town of Lismore from 1938 until the last one was sold in 1992. I was involved in the business from 1954 until closure, and in that time we endured many floods. There was no levee in those days so the water rose fairly gradually, and we were able to move stock and equipment in plenty of time. Since the levee was built, so-called minor floods have been kept out of the CBD, but once the river over topped the levee the water came very quickly, as evidenced by the first photo. This resulted in those who had delayed packing up having very little, or no time to do so, with the result that many were flooded and stock lost. The full extent of the damage won't be known until access is available. The river in town has fallen by about 4 metres, so it shouldn't be too long before owners can get to their shops. We are still cut off, but that's inconsequential, as we have plenty of food etc, and the road should clear in the next couple of days. The business owners, and those whose houses went under, will take much longer to recover.


Photos below are views from our property, so it can be seen we are well above the water, some of which can be seen at the right hand end of the house in photo 3.


Peter.
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derekwarner

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #10 on: April 02, 2017, 01:14:39 am »

What is the cow's name Peter?  %) is she a Jersey? ........Derek
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BrianB6

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #11 on: April 02, 2017, 03:40:47 am »

Look on the bright side.   You don't have far to go to sail a boat.  %%
Mind you it would probably have to be a speedboat to cope with the current.  %)
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Peter Fitness

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #12 on: April 02, 2017, 11:04:07 pm »

What is the cow's name Peter?  %) is she a Jersey? ........Derek


The "cow" is actually a purebred Simmental bull, Derek, and his name is Leo O0 Jerseys don't have white faces.


Peter.
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Peter Fitness

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #13 on: April 02, 2017, 11:06:16 pm »

Look on the bright side.   You don't have far to go to sail a boat.  %%
Mind you it would probably have to be a speedboat to cope with the current.  %)


The current in the water visible in the photos is virtually non-existent, that water has backed up from the main river. The main channel would be a different story.


Peter.
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RAAArtyGunner

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #14 on: April 04, 2017, 07:42:44 am »

The Insurance companies are at it again.

On latest news bulletin, Logan City has been hit very hard with local flooding whereas Brisbane got off very lightly.

The Brisbane Mud Army has been re activated and at work in Logan city south of Brisbane.

The mud army, was groups of volunteers 10 or so strong, numbering in the hundreds, from all walks of life going door to door to flood affected properties, houses, businesses, etc and helping to clean up by removing debris, cleaning up mud and rubbish, striping out rotted water damage cladding, fallen trees, etc etc.

These people did a tremendous job and thanks to them, they helped flood victims retain some of their sanity in their time of real hardship and despair.

As Logan is infinitely worse of than Brisbane this time round the "Mud Army" mobilised to Logan but here is the rub, the insurance council, the 'voice' for all insurance companies, has called on them, the Mud army to stop immediately as the properties need to be inspected by an assessor before anything can be done to them.

At least the local Mayor was all fired up and gave the insurance companies a rocket, saying they knew the floods were coming and should have had all their assessors on standby, and ready to hit the ground running and not making flood victims wait weeks and weeks to get an assessor to inspect the damage.

Insurance companies back to their old tricks, looks like Government will now be prevailed upon to step in and hurry them along.

Parasites feeding of peoples' ill fortunes.

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RAAArtyGunner

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Peter Fitness

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Re: Australian Floods
« Reply #16 on: April 04, 2017, 10:59:08 pm »

Ah, insurance companies, don't you just love them? Or not, as the case may be. They'll take your money but extracting money from them is a bit like getting blood from a stone. Thankfully, not all insurance companies are the same, some will settle claims quickly, others drag on for, in some cases, years.


The clean up is well under way in Lismore with many volunteers helping home and business owners to get going again. It seems that up to 80 fire trucks and 500 personnel from Rural Fire Services from towns all around NSW are in the city, using fire hoses to quickly hose the mud from buildings and streets. Many shops are back trading again, while some may never re-start. I have to go into town today for our weekly shopping, so I will get my first look at the aftermath of the flood, although I understand that some sections of the CBD are closed to traffic and non essential pedestrians so the clean up can continue unhindered.


It appears that some business owners did not even attempt to pack stock higher, or even remove it, apparently believing that the levee would protect them, despite numerous warnings to the contrary. These people have lost everything, while those who heeded the warnings only have to clean their premises and re-open for trading. Complacency seems to have been a big factor, with many business owners never having seen what a flood can do, while the more experienced took appropriate action.


Hopefully valuable lessons will have been learned for future reference.


Peter.
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