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Tweed Shire Councillors today issued an open letter to all members of the Tweed community, in the aftermath of the devastating flood.
The letter thanks the community for supporting one another, NSW SES volunteers for working tirelessly on the ground, and the Australian Defence Force for their help.
The letter was signed by Mayor Chris Cherry, Deputy Mayor Reece Byrnes, Cr Rhiannon Brinsmead, Cr Meredith Dennis, Cr Nola Firth, Cr James Owen and Cr Warren Polglase.
Read the letter in full below:
Dear Tweed Community,
To say we are hurting is an understatement.
Never before have we faced a disaster of this magnitude. So many of our family, friends and own lives have been turned upside down by the recent flood and tragically our community is mourning the loss of 2 of our own – one resident from Byrrill Creek and another resident from Wooyung, who passed away north of the border at Currumbin Valley.
Floodwaters inundated more of our beautiful towns, villages and suburbs than ever before, with many of our homes, businesses and farmlands sustaining major damage. Much of our road infrastructure will take months to repair.
As we move through devastated communities and speak one-on-one with people who are suffering personal loss and trauma, we are proud of and deeply heartened by the support members of the community are providing.
To the NSW SES, we say thank you for tirelessly working to keep our community safe. Throughout the Northern Rivers, your teams of volunteers continually stepped up.
To all in our community who were there for others, we say thank you! From the heroes who saved people from floodwaters, to the teams of volunteers and support who sprang into action to commence the largescale clean-up. Your efforts to clean, cook, care for and coordinate community donations and volunteers represent the Tweed community spirit at its very best.
The generosity and resilience of our community and businesses is overwhelming and heartwarming. Together, we will rebuild our lives.
Since the onset of this crisis, Council has been working around the clock, first on the response as we restored essential services and now on the recovery as we manage the mammoth task of cleaning up and doing all we can to help residents and businesses get back on their feet.
Our team has already logged more than 1,500 repair jobs including 60 damaged bridges across more than 100 Council roads, with more expected. Landslips are responsible for most of our expected long-term road closures, including major landslips at Tyalgum Road, Scenic Drive and Reserve Creek Road, where geotechnical investigations are underway. The design and construction of these repairs will take many months to complete.
The Australian Defence Force is a welcome sight and for many a boost to morale, knowing help is here. We are grateful to them.
As your Council, we will advocate for continued support from the NSW and Australian Governments so that we can recover and rebuild. This will take time but we will get there.
If you need support or help accessing Disaster Relief payments, please come to the Recovery Centre, located at the Murwillumbah Civic and Cultural Centre at 10–14 Tumbulgum Road. Open 9 am to 5 pm daily. The centre is a one-stop destination for a range of government and community services. Counselling is also available. The wait times can be long but people need time to tell their stories and be heard. Please be patient while the resilience teams help find the best help for them.
We wish you and your families the best as we recover from this disaster. A little kindness goes a very long way so, as we all continue to look out for each other, don’t hesitate to check in on how people are doing. The flood has hit us hard but together we are Tweed and together we are a strong community who will get through this.
Warmest regards,
Your Council
Mayor Chris Cherry, Deputy Mayor Reece Byrnes, Cr Rhiannon Brinsmead, Cr Meredith Dennis, Cr Nola Firth, Cr James Owen and Cr Warren Polglase
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