Moving Forward

IN our April column we highlighted our activities in the flooded areas of NSW and the work by many in both Evacuation and Recovery Centres.

Mid North Coast teams have stepped up and been active in multiple activations in Evacuation and Recovery Centres these past few months.

Individual volunteers have been deployed further north to Byron Bay, Ballina, and Lismore areas.

Our Nambucca team was deployed to Evacuation Centres and pop-up Recovery Centres in Nambucca Heads, Macksville and Urunga, supporting those in need as a result of the second wave of flooding in late March.

Grants Update

At 5 pm on Thursday 21 April the Red Cross Flood Grant online portal closed, raising almost $40 million for our cash assistance program for people impacted by the floods in NSW and Queensland.

The Australia Unites Telethon, which was hosted by broadcasters Nine, Seven and Ten, raised $27.2 million.

Red Cross Acting Director of Australian Programs, Garry Page, said, “$20 million dollars had been distributed so far through approximately 40,000 grants, and an estimated 30,000 eligible applications will be processed in the coming days and weeks.”

Mr Page said the Red Cross had received heart-warming feedback from people who received the $500 household grant.

“People told us the grant, albeit relatively small, was invaluable on their road to recovery.”

“It was obvious that the grant provided immediate relief to many people and that this was only possible because of the generosity of people and partners across Australia.”

Please refer to the following link for the latest updates on numbers relating to grant distribution, which is updated daily, http://www.redcross.org.au/cashassistance.

Welcome and Farewell

We welcome Maria Quintero as Project Officer-Recovery who is responsible for Emergency Service Teams from Nambucca Heads and south to Taree.

Maria is based at the Kempsey office and was our guest speaker on 30 April at our team meeting.

We farewell a local Emergency Services Team Member for Red Cross, Lee Gilliland.

Lee joined the Nambucca Heads Team in 2018 and has been tireless in supporting Red Cross through floods, bush
fires in Evacuation and Recovery Centres in NSW and Queensland.

Lee was awarded the prestigious National Emergency Medal due to her support in the Townsville floods in 2019 the and Black Summer Bushfires 2019-2020 which clearly reflected her dedication to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of so many communities in difficult times.

 

By Adele MCCOLLOM, Nambucca Red Cross