New grants available for Queenslanders affected by latest floods

In light of more flooding and heavy rains, the Queensland government has made disaster funding available through the jointly funded Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.

According to Queensland’s Minister for Fire and Emergency Services Mark Ryan, grants of up to $180 per person are available, with a maximum of $900 for families of more than five people, in the local government areas (LGAs) of Lockyer Valley and Southern Downs.

More funds have been made available for immediate cleanup efforts in LGAs such as Brisbane, Gold Coast, and Toowoomba.

“There are a wide range of severe weather warnings and flood warnings in place and huge amounts of rainfall on already saturated catchments and I encourage people in these areas to listen to the warnings and always remember, if it’s flooded, forget it,” Ryan said.

Federal Minister for Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience Bridget McKenzie offered the support of the federal government.

“This has been an unseasonal deluge and comes on the back of a long disaster season in Queensland,” McKenzie said. “But we will continue to work with the Queensland Government to ensure that people affected have the support they need.”

At the time of writing, the Bureau of Meterology has issued major flood warnings for the Condamine and Balonne Rivers, Mary River, Thomson River and Cooper Creek.

Queensland has already been dealing with its floods from February and March, with an independent review commissioned to examine the government’s response led by Alistair Dawson, as previously reported in The Mandarin.

This article was first published by The Mandarin.