Deputy Premier and Minister responsible for Disaster Recovery John Barilaro,left.Credit:Kate Geraghty
“Life won’t be normal for a lot of people for a long time,and we have to face that. For some people,the clean-up and recovery will take longer than what we would like.”
The strike force,led by Deputy Premier and Disaster Recovery Minister John Barilaro,will commence work in flood-affected areas pending receding waters and a green light from the NSW State Emergency Services.
Its first priority will be ensuring roads are accessible,making places safe for people to return,assisting with the clean-up and removing bulk waste to provide initial relief.
“The bushfires taught us a great deal. We staged the recovery process,beginning with safety,then clean-up,then rebuild,and that work continues,” Mr Barilaro said.
“Clean-up and recovery is an emotional journey and one that needs managing with the utmost sensitivity and compassion. I will carry that experience with me as we begin the recovery process from these extreme floods.”
Mr Barilaro will travel to the Mid North Coast on Friday to start assessing the damage and the scale of the clean-up.
The Nepean River on Tuesday after days of heavy rain.Credit:Wolter Peeters
The Premier said Mr Barilaro would lead the recovery effort to get communities “back on their feet as soon as possible,” with the support of Resilience NSW.
No major rainfall is forecast for the next week,after the weather system that was generating torrential rainfall was pushed out into the Pacific Ocean.
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Late on Wednesday the Bureau of Meteorlogy cancelled a severe weather warnings for people in the Illawarra,South Coast,Central Tablelands,Southern Tablelands and Snowy Mountains forecast districts. Gusty westerly winds were also easing gradually over the state’s central and southern ranges.
Despite blue skies,the flood risk is expected to continue into the weekend.
Emergency services spent Wednesday focused on rising rivers in Moree,the Northern Rivers,the upper Hunter around Singleton,parts of the Central Coast and the Hawkesbury-Nepean catchment,where some river heights exceeded 13 metres before midday.
Around 1500 NSW SES volunteers were deployed to assist with the recovery,assisted by 100 volunteers from interstate. A further 6000 people were evacuated,while 60,000 remained on evacuation warning. At 5pm 189 schools were still closed.
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