Australia: Flood victims get army of angels

Living in Australia, it's stories like this one that makes me so glad I made the move Down Under. The state of Queensland has been devastated by the worst flooding in many years and most of the state has been affected. We are still seeing the devastation on the TV daily and it's hard to comprehend the amount of damage the flooding caused. Many, many homes and businesses have been totally lost and the Australian people have dug deep into their pockets to donate to the victims. Not only this, but the people of Queensland and beyond have pitched up in droves armed with their brooms, high-pressure cleaners and their hoses to help strangers clean up their homes, businesses and towns. I got a huge lump in my throat just seeing the community coming together to help each other. There have been a few (very few) cases of looting and two people have been caught so far. The Australians correctly call them mongrels and they face 10 years jail time for their deeds. Other than the few mongrels, the people have pulled together and started the big clean and we wish them well. In comparison to what happened after Katrina, we can only compare and shake our heads....Queensland have got on with the job and aren't waiting for the government to come to their rescue.

IT will go down in folklore as Salvation Saturday.


It was the day an army of big-hearted volunteers shouldering brooms, mops and shovels began digging and sweeping Brisbane out of the mud.

In a remarkable display of community spirit, more than 20,000 signed on for duty, ready to bend their backs to help fellow residents reclaim their homes and waterlogged possessions from the stinking sludge left behind by the worst floods in a generation.

Politicians, pensioners, university students, garbos, chippies, teenagers, mums and dads from all walks of life joined forces in the street-by-street clean-up. They brought their own tools and an inexhaustible supply of goodwill.

Some volunteers even came from interstate to help, hopping on the first available planes after watching the drama unfold during the past week. Lord Mayor Campbell Newman led the procession and divided the workers into morning and afternoon shifts.

Buses ferried the volunteers to flood-affected areas from the Boondall Entertainment Centre, Doomben Turf Club, Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens and MacGregor State High School auditorium from 7am.

Working in four-hour shifts, they slapped on mosquito repellent and got to work helping residents with the monumental task of cleaning up their homes.

More than 200 bulk bins were rolled out for the dumping of spoiled food and broken furniture. It was dirty work, but nobody was complaining.

The crisis has brought the best out of Queenslanders.

There was the grey-haired angel who arrived at the RNA Showgrounds evacuation centre with a tray full of warm cookies. At Newmarket, a group of raggedy-haired university students filled sandbags and put them on trucks.

Across town, a city apartment complex was transformed into a makeshift retreat. It didn't matter who you were, if you wanted to stop in for a beer, there was an open-door policy.

Pam, a Red Cross volunteer at the QEII evacuation centre, gave up her time to care for those who needed her help.

"We just do what we can to make these people feel at home and to make sure they're as comfortable as possible," she said. "I'm lucky I didn't get affected by the floods, so I feel like I should be doing something to help others who weren't as fortunate."



The cleanup begins

 Darren Moss, of Graceville, was himself evacuated on Wednesday, but his home was unaffected. He said it did not feel right watching the devastation at home on television and doing nothing.

"We came down today because we felt it was something that we needed to do ... there's a moral obligation, and a social obligation as well."

Thousands more "unofficial" volunteers have simply materialised to help friends and strangers as Brisbane and Ipswich residents try to get back on their feet.

Brisbane mayor Campbell Newman said: "My message to the community is this is a marathon, not a race. It will take time to clean up, so please pace yourselves and be careful.

"For those who can't help this weekend, don't worry, as there will be many more days when your help will be much appreciated."

Kerrie Ellice was among those who turned out to help people clean up their homes and businesses.

"We were actually at Toowoomba when it hit," the Victoria Point woman said as she helped strip a stranger's Rocklea home that was wrecked by floodwaters.

"We saw the streets flooded ... it pulls on the heartstrings, so we just wanted to come and help. Fortunately, it didn't affect us up at Toowoomba. You just count yourself so lucky."

Allen Mitchell, whose granny flat under his home in Colvin St, Rocklea was wrecked, said he was shocked at how quickly his clean-up was progressing.

"We had people, just random people, come through (to help)," he said.

"It looked like a tsunami had gone through there ...

"But if you've got the right tools to clean up with, you're laughing, mate."

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said the recovery effort would need "every single person to be part of this".

"If we help the people we know around us, then that will make the task for the authorities that much easier," Ms Bligh said.

The Premier needn't have worried. It's the natural-born instinct of Queenslanders.

In Fig Tree Pocket, helpers - many of them young men in utes - came from nowhere.

There were properties to be saved and belongings to be moved and, like waterproofed angel,s they just appeared.

Sweat dripped from the brows of complete strangers as they lugged sofas, fridges, tables and other household items.

What the typical house looks like after the water damage

Outside Brisbane, there was plenty of work to do as well.

At Dalby, Fiona and Bob Marshall, the straight-talking owners of the local corner store, were two of the last people to be evacuated from the flooded country town.

They have now returned home to clean up.

"Somebody had to stay back and make sure the others had had something to eat," Mrs Marshall said.

"By the end of it, we ran out of most things, but we still had bread and smokes."

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