A fleet of over 50 private trucks has been engaged by the MidCoast Council to help remove waste from kerbsides in the aftermath of record flooding.
To facilitate the effective and efficient removal of Taree area waste, a temporary waste transfer site has been set up at Kanangra Drive, Taree with waste then transferred away by semi-trailer.
An identical facility has been established in Wingham at the former Glenyarra quarry.
With parts of the Mid North Coast experiencing one in 500 year flood levels over the past week, the clean up is expected to be a long road for many of who have experienced devastating impacts in these communities.
Recovery efforts are now in full swing in the area with the NSW Police, Public Works Advisory, Fire and Rescue NSW, SES, EPA, LLS, NPWS and the NSW Rural Fire Service working together.
The huge cleanup got underway over the weekend for business owners, residents and volunteers with Taree one of the worst-hit areas along the mid-north coast, receiving 500mm of rain in little more than 48 hours.
Teams from Fire and Rescue NSW and the NSW Rural Fire Service have been undertaking rapid damage assessments and washouts while the local council assisted in stripping out and removing flood damaged property and damaged building materials.
The localities visited by the teams include Gloucester, Bulahdelah, Taree CBD, Taree Estate, Taree Browns Creek area, Glenthorne, Manning Point, Croki, Oxley and Mitchells Island, Wingham Town, Wingham Peninsula and Cundletown.
In two days alone, thousands of tonnes of rubbish have been removed from parts of Taree and Wingham.
There are many areas where waste is accumulating on the kerbside and council with its contractors will get there to pick it up.
More than 1600 assessments of residential, commercial and industrial premises have been undertaken by Rapid Damage Assessment teams.
So far 488 buildings have been declared uninhabitable as of yesterday with the expectation of many more.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that 70 Australian Defence Force personnel had been deployed on the ground in the Mid North Coast to help with recovery.
A team from Disaster Relief Australia, consisting of 25 personnel, initially, would likely to be increased to 100 on the ground by the end of the week to provide assistance.
Flood affected farmers and livestock carriers would receive support according to the Prime Minister with primary producers and small business support triggered in some flood-affected areas.
“What we’re doing is continuously monitoring, but there will be support,” said Albanese.
“The primary producers, allows for concessional rate loans as well as freight subsidies to help with transport of livestock and also to support fodder being given to these areas.”
