From the National Bushfire Recovery Coordinator, Andrew Colvin No images? Click here Bushfire Recovery News – Edition 7From the National Bushfire Recovery CoordinatorIt’s been a busy couple of weeks at the National Bushfire Recovery Agency (NBRA) with appearances at the Senate Finance and Public Administration Committee Inquiry into Lessons to be Learned in Relation to the Australian Bushfire Season 2019-20, the Select Committee Inquiry into Regional Australia and the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements. The number of public hearings and inquiries we are being asked to attend is indicative of the community’s interest in the progress of those affected by bushfires. A request to attend is a privilege, an opportunity to discuss our insights and contribute to a national conversation about what we are doing, and can do into the future, to assist people in need. It provides us with the opportunity to pass on the feedback we hear directly from the community. With this public focus on our work, it’s timely to provide an update on the road to recovery. Since we first hit the ground running in January, the work of the NBRA has been twofold – helping with immediate relief, whilst looking ahead for emerging and longer term recovery needs. We have moved quickly to get money flowing, while continuing to grow our evidence base around the areas hardest hit and what those communities need. Making immediate relief payments to families and individuals to help them get back on their feet was a priority. Relief payments are still flowing at a regular rate, as more people reach a point where they feel ready to apply for the assistance they require. In our first few weeks, that also meant delivering emergency funding to local councils most impacted by the fires at the time, whilst in many cases fires still raged and specific information on community needs was not at hand. As more council areas were disaster declared, and our understanding of impacts grew, we refined our initial emergency funding response, making it available to more councils based on the areas hardest hit by the fires. This early funding was focussed on the immediate needs post the fires including a safe place to stay, funding for food and clothing, mental health support, getting roads open, and phones working again. It has been encouraging to see the way that local councils have used these funds to provide immediate support to their communities. There has been a wide array of projects supported, and as further councils report on their activity we will consolidate this information and make it available. I am sure there are good ideas that others may want to replicate also. It’s never possible to have a perfect understanding of current and emerging recovery needs, but we are constantly engaging with our state and local government partners as well as local communities, charities and non-government organisations to understand and anticipate need. This is supported by data and expert analysis that complements the lived experiences communities have shared with us. Earlier this year the NBRA worked with consultancy group Ernst and Young (EY) to identify initial indicators of the impact of the fires on local economies and local industry drivers. EY was able to provide estimates on economic exposure that, combined with more qualitative inputs, provides a good sense of the magnitude and relative severity of economic and industry impacts by each local area. We also commissioned social research company The Social Deck to give us a greater insight into local communities’ information and engagement needs, ensuring we can be as timely and effective as possible as we assist them on their road to recovery. You can see our progress to date on our website where we provide information about the bushfire impact, relief and recovery support for bushfire affected areas, as well as detail on the funds allocated to bushfire recovery programs. We will keep the website updated with information on how to access support, and next steps in the recovery process. Have a look below at the great work that’s happening in the Snowy Monaro and Kangaroo Island and take a moment to share South Australia’s milestone in completing their final registered, uninsured home clean-up. Don’t miss our special NSW clean-up tale with a twist – I’m always heartened by the generosity and empathy of Australians, demonstrated in this story. When clean-up contractors heard that 78 year old Bill had lost not just his house but his beloved dog in the fires, they presented him with a brand new puppy. Heart-warming. We also focus this fortnight on wellbeing support for volunteer wildlife carers through Wildlife Heroes. Wildlife volunteers do an amazing job in incredibly difficult circumstances and we need to care for them while they care for our native animals. Funding was also announced on 11 June 2020 for Fortem Australia and the Black Dog Institute, for the provision of free Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and other mental health support services to those emergency service workers and volunteers (and their immediate families and kinship groups) who responded to the Black Summer bushfires. I am pleased that the enormous and valuable contribution of volunteers to bushfire response, relief and recovery continues to be acknowledged. Until next time, take care. Andrew Colvin In this edition
This fortnightSnowy Monaro – Road to Recovery videos Snowy Monaro Regional Council publish videos created by community radio station 2MNO called Road to Recovery. The videos are available each week on their Facebook page and deliver information and experiences of the region's bushfire recovery. If you’re in the Snowy Monaro region, you can tune in at 9.25am on Wednesdays. If you’re further afield, have a look on their Facebook page. Mental Health Factsheets It’s ok to not be ok. Not feeling normal at this time is an entirely normal response. Good mental health and wellbeing is key to recovery. You can access up to 10 free counselling sessions + Medicare rebates for up to 10 clinical sessions if you were directly impacted by bushfires. Find out how you can access these sessions and other currently available support on our website.
Eden-Monaro enrolment details The Eden-Monaro by-election is being held on Sat 4 July. If you live in the Eden-Monaro area and have been temporarily displaced due to the Black Summer bushfires, you don’t need to update your enrolment details ahead of the by-election. You can add a temporary postal address while you are away from your property if you are seeking to register as a postal voter. Check out this video for more information. Key facts and figuresHelp delivered so farOur work to deliver financial relief to communities and businesses is continuing. Below is an update using the latest data received by 12 June. Numbers are rising daily. Clean-up updatesNell Ward and her daughter on their newly-cleared block at Lobethal in the Adelaide Hills. South Australia cleans up final registered homeSouth Australia has reached a significant milestone with the final registered home being cleared and ready for rebuild. Across the state, over 450 fire-affected properties have been cleared and more than 250,000 tonnes of waste has been removed with more than $12.9 million spent. Most of the work has been carried out by Green Industries SA using local contractors, helping to support the local community. South Australia’s Minister for Environment and Water David Speirs MP said while the clean-up of some fencing and sheds will continue, all residential homes in South Australia that were affected by the summer’s bushfires and eligible for clean-up have now been cleared. Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management David Littleproud said the Federal and State Government has gone dollar for dollar in funding the clean-up. “Cleaning up after a bushfire can be a very emotional time and we wanted to make sure there was one less thing to worry about so we committed to clear sites to allow the affected communities to begin rebuilding at no cost to homeowners,” said Minister Littleproud. Kangaroo Island Adelaide Hills South East Yorke Peninsula Clean-ups are continuing in New South Wales and Victoria with completion in NSW set for July and August for Victoria. Read about a special NSW clean up below. Bill of Willawarrin receives new pup Snip from crew - Laing O'Rourke New pup for a new startThe clean-up after last summer’s bushfires has been one of the largest tasks in NSW – and a major step in the recovery for people who lost so much. Humanity and healing have underpinned the clean-up effort. NSW chief clean-up contractor Laing O’Rourke has hired local contractors to do the clean-up, many of whom were impacted by the fires themselves. In fact, 99% of contractors are local or regional, bringing much needed employment and economic stimulus to regional NSW. Clean-up crews have been on the frontline of bushfire recovery, building enduring connections with the people they are helping. Bill, 78, lives near Willawarrin, north-west of Kempsey. When the fires came through his town, they moved faster than expected and took Bill’s house and his beloved dog Pete. Brad Lees, a clean-up sub-contractor from LEEZ Group Services, led a team of six clearing Bill’s property. He and the team were so moved by his story, they decided to do something about it. “Our hearts just broke and we knew we had to do something more than just clear up his property,” Mr Lees said. Bill had told the clean-up team that he was keen to bring a new pup home sometime soon to keep him company, so they decided to bring those plans forward and surprise him with Snip – a three-month old Kelpie cross. Brad and his team all chipped in to give Bill his new best mate. They covered the costs of vet bills, bought a new bed and blankets, a lead, bowl and food. “It was a really humbling moment, one we all will never forget, and a great reminder of just how much this work means to the people in the community,” Mr Lees says. Registrations for the clean-up program are still open and residents are urged to make sure they are registered by contacting Laing O’Rourke or Service NSW on Article from Resilience NSW. Kangaroo Island updateKangaroo Island can't wait to welcome tourists back Reimagine, Rebuild, RenewWorks to rebuild some of Kangaroo Island’s most iconic sites will be fast-tracked to boost the local tourism economy. South Australian Premier Steven Marshall announced up to $52 million of works has started to rebuild and rejuvenate the island’s nature-based tourism economy and create more than 400 jobs following the Black Summer bushfires. “Rebuilding the infrastructure destroyed by the bushfires will provide a timely boost to the local economy and help Kangaroo Island’s nature-based tourism industry bounce back. Works will be fast tracked and will begin immediately to rebuild much-loved visitor experiences across the island. “We want the local community to be involved throughout the rebuild which is why we have launched our Reimagining Kangaroo Island engagement strategy to support the recovery of the island’s tourism economy and balance this with environmental recovery and protection,” said Premier Marshall. Reimagining Kangaroo Island will involve the development of a new western Kangaroo Island parks management plan to support best practice conservation management, and rebuild the boardwalk to Remarkable Rocks, the Kangaroo Island Wilderness trail and essential infrastructure in Flinders Chase National Park which were all destroyed by the bushfires. For more information visit: www.parks.sa.gov.au/reimagine-ki/ Caring for wildlife carersA mental health program to support volunteer wildlife carersThe Australian Government has supported Wildlife Heroes, a volunteer program of the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife and Two Green Threads in a dedicated Caring for Carers program to support the mental health of over 10,000 wildlife carers in Australia. The free program, which includes mental health advice, resources and podcasts, has been designed for volunteers who have been involved in rescuing wildlife from the Black Summer Bushfires. Wildlife carers are often the first responders for affected wildlife and have been managing huge demands during and since the Black Summer bushfires. They have experienced traumatic and dangerous situations. This program is focused on their mental and physical health so they can continue doing their valuable work. “We are so thankful for our volunteer carers around the country who have worked tirelessly in rescuing our wildlife through some of the worst conditions we have ever seen. Along with survival stories, they have also witnessed incredible loss, so caring for our carers is our highest priority,” said Ian Darbyshire, CEO of the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife. For more information on Caring for Carers and the podcasts visit the Wildlife Heroes website. Wellbeing help for emergency service workers (Career and volunteer) and their immediate families and kinship groupsFunding has been granted to the Black Dog Institute and Fortem Australia Limited for the provision of free post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health support services to those emergency service workers including volunteers who responded to bushfires across Australia in 2019-20 and their immediate families and kinship groups. If you are an emergency services worker who responded to these fires, regardless of where you live, you are able to access these services. Black Dog Institute https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/ Fortem Australia Limited https://fortemaustralia.org.au/
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