Source: Australia Government Statements 2
Assistant Minister Nita Green: Well, thanks everyone for being here and I’m really pleased to be in Townsville at the local Disaster Management Coordination Centre somewhere we know that is so important for the community during high risk weather season. But we’ve got a fantastic announcement today, and it’s one that I really wanted to be a part of as a Senator from Queensland, but particularly regional Queensland. We know that disaster season is always tough for regional Queenslanders and the past few high risk weather seasons we have been really battered, and we’ve seen cyclones, we’ve seen floods, and only a year ago we were here at the disaster centre managing really extensive flooding, not just here in Townsville, but throughout the region. Our government has always taken an approach that it is better to be resilient towards natural disasters than recover afterwards, and we wanted to build the resilience of our communities because we know that that is a good way to invest public funds, to make communities more resilient so that we have less recovery to do afterwards.
And that’s exactly what I’m here to announce today. The Disaster Ready Fund is something that our government was committed to delivering, and we have actually delivered $600 million through this fund already. We announced 96 projects this week for the next third round of this fund, and I’m thrilled to say that North Queensland has been committed funds through the DRF. Most particularly, I’m really pleased to be here with Alf Lacey, the Mayor of Palm Island, and Ann-Maree Greaney from the Townsville Council because these two projects will make an enormous difference to the communities. I’m going to let the councillors talk about their projects and how important they are to their communities, but I just wanted to say from my point of view, the commitment we are making to Palm Island to build its first ever cyclone shelter is a really historic and momentous occasion and something that I know will make a huge difference to that community.
I want to congratulate Mayor Lacey and the community itself on putting forward this application for funding. We know that this is not something that they’ve been fighting for years, it’s something they’ve been fighting for decades and it will make a real difference to the community. And when it comes to the commitment we’ve delivered for Townsville, more early warning systems really will make disaster seasons easier for people here in the disaster centre, but also the community on the ground. We know early information, the right information to the right people is so important during a disaster, that it keeps people safe, it moves them where we need to move them, and it makes sure that people don’t feel panicked or scared during what can be a really terrifying time. So I’ll let my colleagues talk about these fantastic projects. Before I finish though, I did, I want to really acknowledge the work of Ann-Maree, particularly during the last 18 months. It’s been a really wonderful experience working with you, and I think particularly through the disaster season. We know that Townsville plays an integral role, not just in protecting the people here on the ground, but also the entire region, and I’m really proud of the work that Anne-Maree’s done. I’m really glad that we will continue to work together and I just want to acknowledge that work here in a place that I’m sure she spent many, many sleepless nights only a year ago. So I’ll hand over to my colleagues. Thanks, Mayor.
Alf Lacey, Mayor of Palm Island Shire Council: Thanks, Senator Green, and first of all, as she said is that the Palm Shire has been pushing this not as, obviously it’s been on the cards in our community probably for the last 30 years in terms of having somewhere safe in our community. As we know when weather events do come along and particularly cyclone, we are really, really vulnerable in terms of it. Part of the town packs up and move off to Townsville and the public service moves off the island and then we’re left to our own devices in terms of how we manage through our disaster management in our community. This is welcoming. I would like to certainly commend the Albanese government for this piece of investment it is really, really, really important. And I’ll go back to particularly what a former premier said in Queensland some time ago during the big weather event is that we breed ’em tough across the border, but in North Queensland we’re a resilient bunch of people and we shoulder up when we need to shoulder up in terms of this particular region, working with my colleague at the Townsville City Council, Hinchinbrook, the Burdekin and Charters Towers, which is really, really, really important because we work together very well when it comes to disaster. So once again, thanks Senator Green and certainly thanks to the Albanese Government For The Investment To Our Community.
Ann-Maree Greaney, Acting Mayor of Townsville City Council: Thanks. Thank you. Good morning everyone. I would personally like to thank Senator Green for being here this morning to announce both these projects, and I would really like to commend the Palm Island Council for getting that funding for the cyclone shelter. As the Mayor has already mentioned, we work very, very closely in disaster times and so happy to support the region of councils, particularly Palm Island as the Mayor mentioned, and I think it’s a wonderful achievement for them to be able to deliver a cyclone shelter. In terms of our funding for the Disaster Ready Fund, I’d like to thank the government for this. We’ve never secured a million dollars in flood resilient planning, and it will go a long way to help us, as the Senator mentioned, to build a more resilient community. The more data that we can get around flooding in and around Townsville and the surrounding areas goes a long way to building resilience in our community. So yes, thank you very, very much for this funding. As I said, it will go a long way to help us in terms of not only in disasters, but in also forward planning from a council perspective. Thank you.
Journalist: What does that planning? Is it technology? What is it?
Greaney: It will probably, I might hand over to Zac in terms of the intricacies.
Zac Dawes, Local Disaster Coordinator: So with these projects we’ve been able to, or we will be able to firstly capture that information. So additional rain and river gauges, updated flood studies, the storm tide evacuation zone, the Ross River evacuation zone. We’ll be able to sort of work with our new data sets to see where we can make improvements there, how we analyse that information. So we do have our internal flood forecasting software, so upgrades to that and then how we disseminate that information to the community. So looking at some automated flood warning messaging,
Journalist: What would that mean for timeframes for the community to find out in terms of when they need to evacuate?
Dawes: Yeah, it certainly helps us in our planning. I won’t give specifics on timeframes, but it does allow us to capture more information, to analyse that information, and then for the local disaster management group to make informed decisions off better information.
Journalist: What did you learn that you might apply in the future? We’re talking about today from earlier this year, Zac, is there anything particular that stands out?
Dawes: Yeah, certainly in terms of our flood warning infrastructure network, so we’re looking at additional hard infrastructure, rain and river gauges, especially around the blue water and the black river areas. Automated road warning signs, so when the water does come over the road, we’re not relying on staff to be there. We can have that automated messaging straight to the community that there is a hazard.
Journalist: I just have one for Mayor Lacey as well. With this funding, how will that kind of change how you guys look to plan with the wet season coming up ahead? How does that kind of change or differ and benefit you guys in your planning for disaster season?
Lacey: The planning for the upcoming event, because we are already into that dangerous zone and certainly into the wet season. I think some of the outlook at the moment is in terms of we’ll expect more rather than less, so we’ll do what we have always done in terms of putting community first and putting their safety first. And certainly we’ll continue to work with our colleagues at Townsville City Council, Hinchinbrook, Charters Towers and the Burdekin, in terms of a coordinated effort, until we can get this new investment built in our community. I think once the new investment is built and the shelter is built, then certainly we’d be more professionally prepared. In terms of some of the stuff that Zac’s raised, we don’t have issues with major flooding in our community. Our biggest worry is the total inundation and the effect that climate change is having, as I said earlier on, is that we’re the only local government shire in the country that lives within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Zone. So it’s really important that we get it right and this investment gives us that opportunity to get it right and make sure that any future event in our community is well organised and well prepared.
Journalist: This is something that the residents were saying they needed during Cyclone Kirrily. It’s been something that you and the community have been fighting for 30 years, Mayor Lacey, what’s been the community response to now knowing that they’re actually going to have a cyclone shelter?
Lacey: Look, I think the response is, the response has been good and the commentary from a lot of the community people as I moved around the community after the announcement took place, is that finally, after all those years waiting, that we’re able to get a centre that helps actually coordinate and better align our disaster management planning or any other event, whether it’s tsunamis or earthquakes and things like that. So it’s really, really important because like I said earlier on, is that once the public service moves out of our community, which they’re generally the first people to get out of the community, and then we’re just left to our own devices in terms of managing ourselves and managing the four and a half thousand people that lives in my Shire. But it’s quite welcome, quite welcome, and I think it’s really important that the Albanese Government needs to be commended in terms of the investment, particularly for our community.
Journalist: Do you have a timeline of when construction might begin?
Lacey: There’s been a lot of planning done around it and a lot of land mapping. I did have a meeting with the disaster management people just the other day in the site that we’ve done some planning around is actually sitting half of it’s sitting in the red zone. So I think we need to go back to the table in terms of mapping it properly and then once we’ve got it mapped properly, then we’ll make the public announcement in terms of where the physical site will be.
Journalist: Sure. And how much are you receiving for this project?
Lacey: I think it’s around about $17 million. I’ll let the Senator explain that one.
Journalist: Just one more before you go. Obviously I think it’s a 600 person shelter. How many in a time of disaster, how much of the population are you able to keep safe with lots of people leaving? Is that really home, a majority of them in that time?
Lacey: Well, we’re hoping that it depends on the build and the size of the new complex that’ll give us a fair idea, particularly in the architectural planning stage. I spoke to Zac earlier on here at Townsville City Council in terms of giving us some ideas. This is a nice centre actually. The first time I’ve been here and I’ve been to the Gold Coast one, I’ve also been to the one at Cooktown and Hope Vale, which those centres are quite impressive. The one at Hope Vale is, Palm is a bigger population than most of the First Nation communities in Queensland. And it’s a matter of the planning and certainly what we arrive at in terms of what type of build will happen in the community.
Green: I’ll just repeat those figures if that’s helpful. So I’m very pleased that the Palm Island Cyclone Shelter is a $17 million project that will be receiving close to $15 million from our government. It is co-funded by the council. They are putting money into this project as well to get it up off the ground and we can’t wait to see it built. The project that we are delivering with the Townsville City Council is close to $2 million and it’s a 50 50 co-funded project, so we’re putting in close to $1 million for that project. I should also say before we finish off, we are in the high risk weather season right now. Our thoughts go out to our friends in the Northern Territory that are facing a cyclone warning right as we speak. And it is an important time to remind people in this community that it is the period where you should be getting ready for disasters.
You should be taking the precautions that you need at home to make sure that you are ready. Jonathan Thurston is a great Cowboys player, but also a really good spokesperson for the Get Ready Campaign. And it is time to listen to what JT says, get your home ready, get your family ready, have a plan in place because we are in the high risk weather season now, and hopefully we can keep everyone in this community safe throughout summer. Thanks everyone.