The numbers are mind boggling. Water levels 9 metres above normal, and area 3x the size of New Zealand under water. I have been in floods, in fact Cyclone Bola swept through my residence (and then we had another less than 6 months later), but the water rose and was gone. It didn’t hang around for weeks, it was a short sharp slap, we endured the pain of watching water come and go overnight, and then got on with the recovery.
My heart goes out to those affected, farmers have lost their year’s income (in actual fact it is worse than that because they have invested the money into that crop that was just about to be harvested), families will have lost homes and their lives will never be the same. Australians, like New Zealanders, are a stoic lot and they will get through this. It will take years for some towns to recover but just like I can now roll Cyclone Bola off my tongue, like a badge of farming honour, they will get through and the desperation and despair will turn.
