Joint media release with the Hon Janelle Saffin
Disaster assistance is now available in the Gunnedah, Gwydir, Moree Plains and MidCoast Local Government Areas (LGAs) following widespread severe weather, including strong winds, heavy rainfall and floods.
Support has been made available under the joint Commonwealth-state Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA) - with assistance for the Narrabri Local Government Area already in place.
Assistance measures that may be provided to communities include:
- Assistance for eligible residents to help meet immediate needs like emergency accommodation and essential items generally provided from evacuation or recovery centres.
- Grants for low-income, uninsured residents to replace lost essential household items to maintain basic standard of living.
- Grants for low-income, uninsured residents to undertake essential structural repairs to restore their homes to a basic, safe and habitable condition.
- 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 grants to sporting and recreation clubs to repair or replace damaged or destroyed property.
- Freight subsidies for primary producers to help transport livestock and fodder.
- Financial support towards counter disaster activity undertaken by emergency service organisations to keep communities safe.
Federal Minister for Emergency Management Kristy McBain said this assistance would support families, local businesses, sporting clubs, and local councils in the North West of NSW continue to recover from this year's floods and strong winds.
"I know how distressing extreme weather events and the damage they leave behind are for our communities, which is why the Albanese and Minns governments are ensuring support is available for the on-going clean-up and recovery," Minister McBain said.
"This extension will support more impacted communities in the North West of NSW - a region that's had more than its fair share of extreme weather events, with the costs of cleaning up and restoring damaged local roads and other essential public assets."
NSW Minister for Recovery Janelle Saffin said the extension of the natural disaster declaration to include Gunnedah, Gwydir, Moree Plains and MidCoast is critical to ensuring the community can get back to their daily lives as soon as possible.
"We know that people's daily lives were seriously disrupted by the flooding which has put significant pressure on local councils. That's why we have unlocked this funding support, so they'll have the resources to clean up and restore any public assets impacted by the flooding," Minister Saffin said.
"We will continue to work closely with council to make sure the community is getting the support it needs, and we will work with the Commonwealth Government to ensure no one is left behind in the recovery."
More information on disaster assistance can be found at Recovering from a natural disaster and Disaster Assist.
