Outback Queensland communities come together to begin flood recovery

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Outback Queensland communities are still counting their losses as floodwaters slowly begin to recede. But amid the devastation, those spared the worst of the flooding have opened their doors to others.

Transcript

00:005th generation grazier Stephen Hoare was just days away from shearing at his Quilpie property.

00:09Now he's counting the loss of more than 5,000 sheep.

00:13Where it's really going to hit us is in the bank count because we've lost our sheep,

00:19we've lost our wool clip. That's 12 months work and now it's all gone.

00:25We've got a very difficult time ahead.

00:28At first the prospect of rain had been welcome.

00:32They give us a prediction of 40 to 50 mil and I thought oh this would be great,

00:37it might put shearing back and give us a bit of feed.

00:39But once the rain started it didn't stop.

00:43Put another three and a half foot of water on top of 1974, that's just unheard of.

00:49And we could just hear the river roaring and it was just like a plane going over all night.

00:54It went for at least 15, 16 hours with just that dull rule.

00:58In Quilpie the pub owners have opened their doors to evacuees from the neighbouring township of Adavale.

01:05I think they just needed a shoulder to lean on for the first part, just because the shock was so great.

01:11And so we just talked to them and looked after them as best we could, gave them a hug where they needed it.

01:17Long term residents say it's the worst flooding they've ever seen.

01:22I was just sitting there watching it climb up my steps and I thought this is going to be serious, which it was.

01:28Some have suffered greater losses than others.

01:32It come out and into my beer shed, knocked the bloody sheet off the back wall,

01:37and I had six cartons of cans there, they've gone down the creek.

01:41I don't know where they are.

01:43While there's talk of moving on, others say they are staying put.

01:48We'll get by, rebuild and have another go.

01:52In Quilpie the pub, rebuild and have another go.

01:54We'll go there and chill.

01:56We'll go there and chill.

01:58Ok, right.

02:00Now that goes down in the spring of the side.

02:03And there are two options.

02:05I said that I have a majority of three options,

02:07so that the interests are.

02:09And there are two options.

02:11I think the other options can be요.

02:13When I am in the middle of the side.

02:15I'm in the middle of the side.

02:17So I'm in the middle of the side.

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