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Responding to floods

The Victorian floods in October 2022 resulted in evacuations across Melbourne suburbs and towns near the Maribyrnong River and northern communities along the Campaspe, Goulburn and Murray rivers. Communities in northern Victoria lost homes, businesses, infrastructure, roads, and crops.

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Flood Recovery Clean-Up Program

Led by Emergency Recovery Victoria, the Flood Recovery Clean-Up Program supported local councils in flood-impacted areas to clean up flood debris and collect waste (DJCS and Australian Government: $95.00m in 2022–23). As part of this program, Emergency Recovery Victoria provided free all-hazards structural assessments for residents. Residents with a severely flood-damaged home were also able to get the structure demolished for free.

Flood Response for Multicultural Communities

The Flood Response for Multicultural Communities activated emergency funding for households impacted by floods and included targeted funding for multicultural communities in flood-impacted areas (DFFH: $2.35m in 2022–23).

The Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH) partnered with community organisations to deliver:

  • on-ground support to multicultural communities during and after the floods
  • almost 25,000 culturally appropriate food packages
  • more than 4,500 emergency supplies such as mosquito repellent
  • tailored in-language information
  • referrals to support services
  • community information sessions and forums.

Multicultural Regional Emergency Management Preparedness, Response and Recovery Program

The Multicultural Regional Emergency Management Preparedness, Response and Recovery Program provided immediate funding to the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria and seven regional ethnic communities’ councils to deliver immediate relief to community members affected by the October 2022 floods (DFFH: $0.80m in 2022–23).

These organisations:

  • delivered more than 80 information sessions tailored to multicultural communities
  • developed 24 in-language videos and brochures
  • supported more than 570 people to access the Personal Hardship Assistance Program and other emergency support payments
  • provided culturally appropriate food to more than 390 families
  • offered outreach support and referrals to more than 2,000 community members
  • delivered 148 information and care packs on mosquito-borne viruses.

LanguageLoop interpreters

LanguageLoop interpreters representing five languages spent 10 days at the Shepparton Relief Centre to ensure community access to information and resources (DFFH: $0.20m in 2022–23). These interpreters answered questions and enabled community members to receive critical and timely assistance in their preferred language.

Tenancy Stress Victoria Pilot

The Tenancy Stress Victoria Pilot program was established to support Victorian renters in flood-affected areas of Western Melbourne, Loddon and Goulburn ($0.25m in 2022–23). This pilot program supported about 150 renters to maintain viable tenancies through access to integrated legal, social work and financial counselling assistance and through negotiating positive outcomes for renters.

Case studies

Know Your Roots – Shepparton seasonal workers

When flood waters divided a town, 45 seasonal workers could not access their homes and workplaces. These community members had to stay in a relief centre for two weeks. Support agencies provided culturally appropriate food and other essential items and created a culturally safe space. During this time, the seasonal workers also volunteered at the relief centre, sand bagging and delivering food in canoes to other communities affected by the floods.

Loddon Campaspe Multicultural Services

One month before the October 2022 floods, 108 workers from the Solomon Islands arrived in Castlemaine. All were on Pacific Australia Labour Mobility visas and were contracted to work at a local meat works. Eighty-three of the workers were living in a caravan park alongside Forest Creek.

When the floods arrived, all cabins had to be evacuated due to rapidly rising flood waters. Residents lost food and possessions. Many residents could not go to work for several days and reported experiencing trauma and distress associated with displacement and lack of local support and information.

Loddon Campaspe Multicultural Services (LCMS) partnered with South East Community Links to provide food and to compensate workers for loss of earnings and possessions lost during the floods. LCMS assisted workers with completing request forms for food vouchers of up to $100 for each person. They also helped people complete referral forms from Bendigo Family Financial Services to access culturally appropriate foods purchased and delivered from a Pacific Islands food wholesaler in Melbourne.

LCMS also delivered three information sessions to inform community members about the dangers, actions and prevention of mosquito-borne viruses, mould issues in cabins and the dangers of snake bites. These sessions were held on the caravan park grounds. A community leader translated all information for each session into Pidgin English. Community members were shown how to use repellents and received factsheets on citronella candles, face masks and hand sanitiser.

Updated

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