Murwillumbah and Tumbulgum residents preparing for yet another flood

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Residents in New South Wales' far north know first-hand how devastating major flooding can be. They're desperate to avoid losing their homes and businesses.  Residents in Murwillumbah and Tumbulgum are doing their final preparations.

Transcript

00:00They're all completely drilled to the wall.

00:04Moolumbar resident Sarah Robertson is used to preparing for disaster.

00:09Building everything in, that's the trick, because anything that's large enough to float,

00:14it will.

00:15Mud still clings to the ceiling of her garage three years after floodwaters swept through

00:20her property.

00:21You can still see the mud on the floorboards.

00:24She spent the day moving her valuables into this nearby motel.

00:28This is, I think, our fifth or sixth flood evacuation visit.

00:33But knowing what to expect hasn't made it any easier.

00:36Our children have only known floods.

00:39Riley, he just turned 11 on Tuesday, and we've been having floods for 10 years now, so it's

00:49been his whole life, so it's terrible that they get used to disaster.

00:56Cane farmer Robert Quirk is all too aware of the damage Mother Nature can cause.

01:01You can probably see the water starting to pour into the farm.

01:05Heavy flooding in 2022 nearly ruined his crops.

01:10Well over $100,000, we've lost income, it's not good.

01:15Some people are really struggling to come out of this.

01:18As flood warnings came through, many fled to higher ground.

01:22To Bulgham Centre, virtually a ghost town as residents hunkered down.

01:27It's been a slow burn.

01:29We've had many days warning and we don't know how high the river's going to go.

01:34The Northern Rivers is known for its resilience, but as it prepares for its third potential

01:40major flood in just eight years, some are questioning the future of building in the

01:46region altogether.

01:49We're concerned that you can't put other people at risk, or you can't keep filling up the

01:54flood plain because it's cheap to develop and easy.

01:59A sleepless night ahead for a region that's been through it all before.

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