Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council today invited bushfire-affected residents from Braidwood and surrounds to a community meeting in Braidwood on Sunday 8 March.
Impacted property owners and businesses will be provided with an update on bushfire recovery efforts to date as well as hear from a range of agencies about the various support measures that are in place.
Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council Mayor, Cr Tim Overall is chair of the Local Bushfire Recovery Committee. Mayor Overall said that three months on from the start of the North Black Range Fire west of Braidwood, Council is continuing to assist bushfire-affected residents to slowly piece things back together after fires impacted several communities in the Queanbeyan-Palerang local government area.
"Since mid-January Council has been operating a bushfire recovery information and referral centre out of the Old Braidwood Library. It's provided an opportunity for impacted members of the community to have face-to-face conversations with support staff, share their stories and find out about various local, State and Federal support measures.
"More recently, staff of the bushfire recovery centre have been out visiting local communities around Braidwood that have been affected by the bushfires.
"Those outreach drop-in sessions have been well attended and well received. We will continue to provide those opportunities for the community to seek the assistance they need," said Mayor Overall.
The bushfire recovery process is expected to be a long one. Council's Bushfire Recovery Coordinator Terry Campese said that people who have presented at the Centre or at the outreach drop-in sessions are all at differing stages in the recovery process.
"Some of the people we've assisted to date were impacted by fire before Christmas or over the New Year period and are already moving toward recovery. Others are still coming to terms with the loss and trauma of the fires and are only just starting to navigate their way through all of the information about what support is available to them," Terry said.
The Braidwood Bushfire Recovery Community Meeting will be held on Sunday 8 March between 2pm and 5pm at the National Theatre Braidwood (100 Wallace Street). All bushfire-affected residents from Braidwood and surrounds are invited to attend. Refreshments will be available.
"As well as being a great chance for the community to ask questions or register for various support measures, the community meeting will be a chance for people to come together to share stories and support each other.
"It's also a chance to talk about what support the community is lacking, what obstacles they are encountering and what they may need in the future," Mayor Overall concluded.
