'Horrendous': Shelter Closures Pour On Housing Pain
mabelapplegate hat diese Seite bearbeitet vor 3 Monaten


Vulnerable residents face a fight to discover food and someplace dry to sleep when flood waters decline and short-term shelters shut.

Nearly 800 people have looked for sanctuary in NSW evacuation centres however their status as pop-up homes for some will stop to exist after the effect of ex-tropical cyclone Alfred passes.

Kim Kennedy, Vinnies' local real estate and homelessness manager for northeast NSW, has actually been on the front lines supporting people sleeping rough in flooded zones.

Her job was made harder on Monday due to harm to Fred's Place, the Tweed Heads drop-in centre where she is based, with consistent rainfall flooding the space.

On any offered day, the centre serves about 130 hot meals to those in requirement but showers and laundry facilities are out of commission up until the flood damage is fixed.

"It has been a horrendous time for the homeless community," Ms Kennedy told AAP.

"It has actually been actually difficult trying to get them any type of shelter."

She said the homeless were trying to discover any dry locations they might sleep across a northern NSW region currently handling a dire scarcity of inexpensive real estate.

"We've been assisting an entire household sleeping in their vehicle," Ms Kennedy stated.

"Seeing them in this horrendous weather is really horrible."

The Byron Shire city government location, south of Tweed Heads, had the most rough sleepers of any council location in the state, according to a 2024 government street count.

"We absolutely do have a housing problem in the Northern Rivers and we need solutions," Ms Kennedy stated.

NSW Premier Chris Minns said evacuation centres set up in schools, universities, health clubs and clubs could not act as a long-term repair to established real estate problems in the area.

"I am completely mindful of the substantial challenges for real estate in the Northern Rivers, however evacuation centres are not irreversible options ... we don't have the resources, the staffing, the time, the allotment," he stated.

The centres would close in all areas once regional emergency orders were lifted, Mr Minns included.

"So I wish to apologise beforehand however we have to draw a really clear and understood line."

More than 10,000 people were under emergency situation warnings in NSW on Monday morning, while 1800 individuals were separated by floodwaters.

About 10,000 homes and businesses were still not connected to power as heavy rain continued to fall in numerous areas.

Major flood were still in location for parts of the Clarence and Richmond rivers, while clean-up operations were under method in other places.

In Pottsville, in between Tweed Heads and Byron Bay, a whale carcass was among the debris that washed up after big swells damaged the coastline for days.

Residents from 17 NSW city government areas who had lost earnings due to the storm would be qualified for federal disaster relief funds for approximately 13 weeks, it was revealed on Monday.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the monetary assistance would be backed by mental health services for affected locations.

"We've got your back, that's my message to communities here," he stated from Lismore on Monday.

Lifeline 13 11 14

beyondblue 1300 22 4636